COMMENTARY: Politics of Keystone XL

An illustration of all the pipelines across North America. (Source: PennWell MAPSearch)

I’m Bill Kingston with today’s commentary. It’s becoming clearer, if it wasn’t already, that U.S. President Barack Obama has a big chip on his shoulder…or make that a pipe. In his third veto, Obama has blocked legislation that would have allowed the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. But this time Obama really looks like the bad guy as the legislation made it all the way to his desk and didn’t get derailed in the Senate. The question is whether the Senate can get the votes now to override the veto. There are thousands and thousands of pipelines criss-crossing North America carrying all sorts of gases and fossil fuels and, somehow, the environmentalists and “tree huggers,” plus this Democratic administration, don’t want to see progress or jobs for economic spinoff from constructing an $8 billion pipeline. The veto vote from the president said the Congress was “attempting to circumvent longstanding and proven processes for determining whether or not…it serves the national interest.” That’s rich coming from a man who imposes executive action to allow illegals to stay in the United States. Thank God a judge stepped in to stop that nonsense. It’s not a question of if, but when, Keystone will be built – a position also held by the Canadian natural resources minister – and when it happens North America will be better for it.

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