Siouxland lawmakers weigh in on the president’s rejection of the Keystone XL

Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, says, “taking either a long view or a short one, this misguided project is not in the national interest of the United States”. “Nonetheless, Canadian energy must have access to markets, and I will continue to partner with industry and other orders of government to advocate for other alternatives, of which there remain many viable options”.

President Barack Obama’s decision to reject TransCanada’s application to build the Keystone pipeline was seven years in the making.

What do you think about President Obama’s decision?

Enbridge Inc. has been waiting since 2012 for a decision from the U.S. State Department on a permit to nearly double the capacity of its Line 67 cross-border pipeline, known as Alberta Clipper.

“While our politics have been consumed by a debate about whether or not this pipeline would create jobs or lower gas prices, we’ve gone ahead and created jobs and lowered gas prices”, Obama said.

The company’s statement read: “It is disappointing the administration appears to have said yes to more oil imports from Iran and Venezuela over oil from Canada, the United States’ strongest ally and trading partner”. And if they rise high enough to make ramped-up production economically viable, new pipeline proposals will come forward.

First, the president said the pipeline wouldn’t make “a meaningful, long-term contribution” to the economy. Obama vetoes the bill days later. Given the facts, I had hoped that the president would change his mind over time and ultimately side with the vast majority of the American people who support this common sense project and worthwhile investment.

She says this decision drifted from the heart of the legal issue and became a political one. Bernie Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley.

America is “leading by example”, he said, and approving the Keystone XL pipeline “would have undercut this global leadership”.

“We finally have the “yes” or “no” the President could not give years ago”.

The nearly 1,900 kilometres pipeline would have carried 800,000 barrels a day of carbon- heavy petroleum from the Canadian oil sands to the Gulf Coast. Finally, he stated shipping the crude oil into the country would not increase America’s energy security.