April 2015, Vol. 70, No.4
Newsline
President Rejects Keystone XL Bill
President Obama used only his third veto on Feb. 24 to halt a bill that would force construction of the Keystone XL pipeline.
Neither the House nor Senate has enough votes to override the president’s rejection of this controversial project. With a vote of 62-37 on March 4, Senate Republican leadership failed to override the President’s veto.
The administration has been careful to point out that the President vetoed the legislation, not the pipeline. The National Interest Determination process is nearing completion and the State Department is expected to make its final recommendations to President Obama in the coming months.
Energy company TransCanada first proposed the Keystone XL pipeline more than six years ago to bring oil from Alberta down to the Gulf Coast. The Keystone pipeline was supposed to create jobs and lessen U.S. dependence on foreign oil. Instead, it has polarized policymakers over environmental and safety issues.
And with the current changes in the oil sector, the U.S. may not even need the Keystone XL as it is seen more as a boon for Canada’s oil producers who want to transport their oil to the U.S. However, additional pipelines would relieve some of the reliance on rail as the primary mode of transport for oil. Rail is a much less secure mode of transport that has resulted in several recent crashes, mainly in Canada.
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