Posted on 02/25/2015 6:39:26 AM PST by SeekAndFind
President Obama vetoed legislation approving Keystone XL this afternoon, creating the latest and most significant challenge for the proposed 1,179-mile pipeline.
Through this bill, the United States Congress attempts to circumvent longstanding and proven processes for determining whether or not building and operating a cross-border pipeline serves the national interest, the president wrote in his veto message. He added that because this act of Congress conflicts with established executive procedures and cuts short thorough consideration of issues that could bear on our national interest including our security, safety and environment it has earned my veto.
Its hard to fathom how Congress could possibly cut short consideration and review of a project that has already been on hold for a staggering 2,349 days. During that time, the State Department conducted not one but five separate and comprehensive reviews, examining precisely the security, safety, and environmental concerns that Obama referenced this afternoon.
In fact, the State Department found, construction of the pipeline may actually improve security and safety by reducing train traffic, which has boomed on pace with the growth of the energy sector. Railway accidents can turn hazardous fast, as illustrated in myriad incidents, from last weeks fiery West Virginia oil-tanker derailment to Canadas Lac-Mégantic disaster, which left 47 dead in 2013. Approval of the pipeline could reduce rail traffic, preventing as many as 48 injuries and six fatalities annually, the State Department projected.
Moreover, the State Department noted last year, TransCanada has prepared an extensive risk-mitigation plan addressing potential hazards both to Americans and to the environment. The Obama administration seems prepared to accept nothing short of an ironclad guarantee of unconditional safety.
The State Department has also thoroughly addressed environmental concerns, responding directly to green groups that raised them. It found that the pipeline would have a negligible effect on emissions levels.
Obamas veto doesnt keep Canadian oil and its accompanying emissions buried. In fact, Obamas veto of the pipeline may be more carbon-intensive than construction would have been; as oil makes its way to the market by dirtier modes of transportation, emissions could actually grow, the State Department said.
The reality is that, contrary to what the president claims today, his own administration comprehensively reviewed Keystone XL and fastidiously scrutinized all possible security, safety, and environmental concerns and found nothing alarming. But the State Departments scientifically grounded conclusions apparently did not mesh with Obamas political agenda. Todays veto is the result.
Since its unlikely that Republicans will muster enough votes to override that veto, Obamas decision all but ensures the United States will miss out on a shovel-ready $7 billion investment in American infrastructure. The veto also kills hope for the more than 42,000 jobs that would directly or indirectly result from the pipelines construction, as well as for $2 billion in wages, according to the Energy and Commerce Committee. Meanwhile, Obamas supporters in organized labor will especially suffer from this lost opportunity.
This destructive veto harms Americas economy. By justifying it with blatantly flimsy excuses, the president adds insult to injury.
Jillian Kay Melchior writes for National Review as a Thomas L. Rhodes Fellow for the Franklin Center. She is also a Senior Fellow at the Independent Womens Forum.
“...just another tantrum by the little boy king”
I heard on the radio tonight an excerpt of some comment where obama was stumbling along about the immigration bill. I hope it comes up in print - but it was amazing. As best as I can recall he said:
“So they think that what I did with immigration is illegal. Then they should vote on it. And when I get it I’ll veto it.”
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