GOP bid to authorize Keystone pipeline fails
Updated 5:47 p.m. Eastern Time
The Senate has voted down a Republican-backed amendment that would have authorized construction of the Keystone Pipeline from Alberta to the Midwest and Gulf Coast.
The amendment to the transportation bill now being debated in Congress, which was put forth by North Dakota Republican Senator John Hoeven, needed 60 votes for passage.
Fifty-six senators voted in favor, while 42 were opposed. Eleven Democrats voted in favor of the measure, along with every Republican present. Two Republicans did not vote.
President Obama denied TransCanada's application to build the $7 billion, 1,700 mile pipeline in January amid concerns about the environmental impact in the sensitive Sand Hills area of Nebraska. He said he was willing to revisit the decision but that a Republican-mandated timeline did not allow enough time for an environmental impact assessment.
The pipeline has sharply driven a wedge between two Democratic constituencies, labor unions, which support its construction, and environmentalists, which oppose it.
President Obama personally made phone calls to senators Thursday morning asking them to oppose the measure. The White House said before the vote that "Republicans are trying to play politics with a pipeline project whose route has yet to be proposed, and despite the claims that this would somehow solve the pain families are feeling at the pump today, according to the company it would take years before it transported a drop of oil."
The U.S. State Department has jurisdiction over the project because the pipeline would cross an international border. Hoeven says that Congress can circumvent Mr. Obama under the authority provided by the commerce clause to the Constitution.
Republican presidential candidates and lawmakers have hammered Mr. Obama for his decision to oppose the pipeline, which they suggest could ease rising gas prices and would create jobs. GOP Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, said in a statement after the vote that Senate Democrats "decided to stand with President Obama and his far left global warming allies."
In remarks to reporters, Hoeven vowed to "continue our efforts including on this bill," adding: "We're trying to get this economy going and create jobs. This is exactly the kind of project that we need to do it."
Sen. Dick Lugar of Indiana, appearing with Hoeven, said Senate Republicans are "hopeful that there will be other opportunities" to authorize the pipeline. House Republicans could potentially attach a similar amendment to their version of the transportation bill, with the possibility that it will remain in the final version of the legislation after it goes through committee. The amendment could also be attached to bills in the future.
Bill McKibben, who led environmentalists protests against the pipeline, said the vote marked a "temporary victory."
"But given that this thing was a 'no brainer' a year ago, it's pretty remarkable that people power was able to keep working, even in the oil-soaked Senate," he added. "We're grateful to the Administration for denying the permit and for Senate leadership for holding the line."
The eleven Democrats who voted with Republicans on the bill were Max Baucus of Montana, Mark Begich of Alaska, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Kent Conrad of North Dakota, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Jon Tester of Montana and Jim Webb of Virginia.
Senators also plan to vote on a separate amendment from Democrats that would mandate that no oil from the pipeline be exported from the United States and that it be build with materials from U.S. companies. Hoeven opposes the measure, saying it would raise oil prices because some refined oil cannot be used domestically.
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so what happens when a tornado hits the exact area this pipeline is in? All that oil soaking into our plains...why do tea baggers hate our beautiful landscape?
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They are a bunch of little children that when they break something they look around in shock and amazement. Then they expect Mommy and Daddy (the Dems) to fix it for them so they can break it again. Amazing!!!!
Pretty funny that liberals cannot dispute facts. They have to verbally insult or call someone stupid or racist.
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Funny how Larry-and-Obama-4-ever can't look in the mirror. (Must not cast a reflection?)
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The post above is what seems to REALLY elude the many Repugs defending the political game being played by Repugs in congress. Dumb Dumb repugs !!
Otherwise, we would be relegating our land to a 30 year stepping stone for Canada to transport its dirty oil to foreign markets.
Indeed, the Wyden Amendment should be used as a model for all offshore and public land drilling. If our country incurs the long term risk of an oil spill, then it should also get the maximum benefit.
The "free market" will have to take a back seat on this one.
Our environment ain't free -- even to the free market.
I could point out the obvious hypocrisy, and lies inherit, of the GOP blocking an amendment to assure the oil is kept here (so how will it then lower our gas prices exactly?) and that the jobs be maintained for American citizens (since the GOP loves immigration), both things that would assure, at least, that whatever meager benefits
of the riches promised to come of this to the American people which are ever realized actually go to the American people as the GOP wants us to believe. I could link to an article like this:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/story/2012-03-09/fracking-gas-drilling-earthquakes/53435232/1?csp=obnetwork
where even the extremist GOP fascists ruling Ohio could not ignore the dangers and destruction involved. I could do a lot of things...
but instead I will just remind you of how small your ***** really is-
because that is all you have the intelligence to comprehend.
Most of the liberals supporting President Obama say that they support him because he is not President Bush. This is 2012 - not 2008 - President Bush is not running. Supporters of President Obama make smirk comments about Republicans, but they don't list the facts concerning President Obama. Anyone can make goofy comments - and free speech allows it. Supporters of President Obama can only really add credibility to their support by listing the accomplishments of President Obama over the past three years.
The problem with supporting President Obama is that his failures and horrible policies put in place far outweigh any accomplishment. Here we have another example of President Obama failing the American people.
I am amazed at supporters of President Obama who still think the nation got it right in 2008. Let's look at the list of achievements during the first 3 years of President Obama and fellow progressives:
1) He lied 8 times in promises to televise the health care discussions openly on CSPAN.
2) He made deals giving one premium health care plan to union members (supporters) and another to the rest of the country.
3) He stood by and allowed the House and Senate to buy health care votes using taxpayer money.
4) He allowed the health care bills to be fashioned behind closed doors and be filled with political favors. This disaster of a health care law increases the cost of health care by imposing fees on medical devices (like pacemakers). He and they took over the nations health care by the federal government - most Americans did not want this extreme action - and still do not. This horrible law will cause the majority of Americans to have higher health care cost in rising premiums. We already can not afford the size federal government that we currently have, with a $16 trillion national debt. It imposes $billions of unfunded mandates on struggling states to provide greater Medicaid coverage. 27 states are suing the federal government over this nonsense, as they don't have the money to pay for this. Businesses are not hiring because of the additional cost PER EMPLOYEE that is caused by this law.
5) President Obama has continued at least a 8% unemployment rate for three years.
6) He irresponsibly overspent 100s of billions of dollars the US didn't have on bailouts (President Bush started it and President Obama accelerated it) and bogus stimulus packages. Progressives in Congress have refused to do their jobs to allow a national budget be established since 2009.
7) President Obama has behaved in the most partisan manner of any recent President, after promising bipartisanship. He has arrogantly trashed everyone who has not agreed with his socialist agenda - even the Supreme Court.
8) Instead of securing the border and enforcing federal immigration laws, the President has made war on Arizona Americans as they attempt to protect themselves from an invasion of illegal immigrants.
9) The President's man, AG Holder, dropped his case against the Black Panthers who blatantly intimidated voters at the polls. Now, Holder may finally be kicked out over "Fast and Furious" - the program that sold guns to Mexican cartels, guns used to kill a US border agent.
10) This President has focused on an extremist agenda of "fundamentally transforming" the US from a democratic republic into a socialist democracy, instead of the millions without jobs. We are all witnessing the collapse of European socialist democracies, yet this does nothing to stop this President from pushing us down that road to disaster.
11) President Obama imposed a moratorium on drilling in the gulf, throwing thousands more out of work. One foreign oil company screwed up, and the President decided to punish other oil companies that have drilled responsibly for decades.
12) President Obama wanted the President Bush tax cuts to expire, which would have resulted in redirecting money away from the economy and pushing it into Washington. The President held on to this until he was forced to change by the pounding the Democrats took in the 2010 election. Still, he promises to increase taxes next year.
13) The President and other progressives in Congress have imposed oppressive additional expenses and regulations on private sector businesses that are crippling the private sector jobs market, while expanding the federal government and public sector jobs. Anyone with any economic sense knows that you need tax revenues from a healthy private sector jobs market to fund public sector expansions, and the money is just not there.
14) With gas prices rising and projected to hit record levels by summer 2012, President Obama stops the Canadian pipeline deal that would reduce the US dependence on middle- eastern oil. His entire energy policy is idiotic, and leaves the US damaged. His impractical policies have included pumping public funds into "green energy" companies that have gone bankrupt, and even GM recently announced it will discontinue the manufacturing of the Volt electric car - they are unable to sell them.
15) In President Obama's 2012 budget, he never addressed serious issues threatening the future of the nation (like the fact that if Medicare and Social Security are not restructured, they both are projected to collapse by 2037). In fact, in the face of a staggering $16 trillion national debt - he proposed that we add another $trillion to it.
Just to name a few. The perfect word for President Obama is "irresponsible".
- The Republicans are FOR the Keystone pipeline ASAP.
- Despite the recent rejection of the application, the Obama administration is FOR the Keystone Pipeline. Enviromnmentalists and anti oil activists are revelling this rejection election year, but realize that the pipeline IS ALREADY BEING reapplied for, as was suggested by the State Dept when therejection occurred. The New plan considers alternative routes....and is WELCOMED bythe administration.
I assure you that on both Dem and Rep sides the Keystone Pipeline is already a done deal.
Now, here is why it may not make sense.........economics.
If we truly expect $2.50/gallon gas, then Tar Sand extraction cannot make enough money to survive. SO if it is true (however it is not) that the Republican candidates plans are to "drill, baby, drill" to the extent that there is such an oilglut (short term as it may be) and that Gas falls to $2/gallon.....the project will fail economically.
However, if gasoline prices continue torise or maintain at about the 4$/gallon level, then tar sand extraction(although it pollutes like crazy and is far less energy efficient than other solutions) may work economically, long term.
Remember how loan guarantees to Solyndra ws cast as manipulation of "choosing winners".
Imagine the ramifications of the pipeline going in at insistence of Congress.....and then failing economically. Again, COngress wants to "choose winners", but would be ill prepared for fallout should it fail (of course it would be several years untilthis is realized).
Of curse my bet is no matter how much oil we drill, the world economy can out grow it, so that it is pretty assured that $4-5/gallon gas is the forseeable future (if not higher).
But don't fool yourself. Obama wants a pipeline to go through....and would like to claim cred it for it. He just doesn't want to do so when there are perceived environmental risks.
AGAIN..... the pipelin is a done deal.