U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts of Kansas tried unsuccessfully to get approval for the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. The two Republicans voted for approval of the pipeline in 2014, then tried again when the Republicans took control of the Senate in January 2015. The vote in the Senate passed. However, it was doomed by President Obama’s veto.
The Keystone pipeline runs from Alberta, Canada through the U.S. to the Gulf of Mexico, but getting the job completed has run into trouble because of environmental concerns. The Keystone XL construction includes routes through Montana and North Dakota with larger pipe.
ALERT: Is Global Warming a Hoax? Vote Now
Construction promised some 42,000 new jobs,
according to the U.S. State Department. Following defeat of the legislation in 2014, Roberts said it was blocked by “liberal obstructionists,” but hoped the incoming Republican Senate would change things,
The Associated Press reported.
The Republican-controlled Senate passed the bill in January 2015 in a 62-36 vote.
Moran said in a statement: “While this vote to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline should have happened years ago, I am very pleased the Senate has finally been given the opportunity to take bipartisan action on an issue of such importance to American job-creation and energy independence.”
The Keystone XL project would move crude oil from Nebraska through Kansas to a processing facility in Oklahoma.
“There is overwhelming support for construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline across the country,” Moran continued, “because Americans understand the importance of this shovel-ready project to job creation and increasing supply of North American energy.”
But the vote and a later vote fell short of overriding a promised veto by the president, who sided with environmentalists that opposed an increased use of fossil fuels for energy production. Republicans couldn’t get the five more votes needed to override the veto.
URGENT: Do You Think Global Warming Is a Hoax? Vote Here Now!
Members of the Senate and House who favor the continued construction of the pipeline hope the Keystone XL project can be included in a future bill for an energy package.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.