U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday vetoed a high-profile bill allowing the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline that is supposed to deliver more than 800,000 barrels of crude from Canada to ports and oil refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Just shortly after receiving the bill, which was passed by a vote of 270-152 in the House earlier this month and cleared in the Senate in January, Obama blocked the bill to little fanfare, saying that the bill circumvents standard procedures for approving major infrastructure projects.
"The presidential power to veto legislation is one I take seriously. But I also take seriously my responsibility to the American people," Obama said in a message to the Senate. "And because this act of Congress conflicts with established executive branch procedures and cuts short thorough consideration of issues that could bear on our national interest -- including our national security, safety, and environment -- it has earned my veto."
The State Department is still in the process of investigating whether the Keystone XL oil pipeline, a project proposed by the TransCanada Corp. energy company, is beneficial to the American people. If approved, the pipeline will deliver 830,000 barrels of Canadian oil sands crude from Alberta passing through Nebraska to the oil refineries and ports situated along the U.S. Gulf Coast.
The veto is not surprising, given the President's past statements downplaying the supposed economic benefits of job creation and less dependence on oil producers in the Middle East. Nonetheless, members of Congress from both chambers expressed their disapproval of the Obama's veto.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) immediately responded to Obama's message, saying the the Republican-dominated chamber will try not later than Tuesday, Mar. 3, to override the President's veto, although the Senate might not be able to generate the two-thirds vote needed to counter the veto.
"President Obama has rejected our attempt to work together," lamented House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-California). "His veto is overtly political. He can no longer hide behind talk that he wants to work with Congress while vetoing a bipartisan bill that will create 40,000 jobs in order to appease the radical left wing of his party."
The 40,000 jobs McCarthy was referring to was cited by the State Department in its ongoing probe into the impact of constructing the Keystone XL pipeline. The department has not provided a pipeline about when it will finish its investigation. Until then, the White House said the President will hold off his final approval or rejection of the bill to wait for the State Department to issue its recommendation.
Even Democrats who support the bill have expressed their discontent, saying that the pipeline is the safest, most commonsensical way to transport the oil to market.
"When our own State Department review shows that this oil is coming out of the ground, it's only a question of how, then the decision to be made is this -- what is the safest way to move it to market?" said Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri). "Pipelines are better than barges or trains. That's common sense, and I will vote to override this veto."
On the other end, environmental groups, which formed a major part of the coalition that helped Obama move into office in 2008 and 2012, are optimistic that he will ultimately reject the bill, although press secretary Josh Earnest said it is possible Obama will approve the bill.
"This veto, along with the president's increasing public skepticism about Keystone XL ... makes us more confident than ever that [the] president will reject the permit itself once and for all," said Gene Karpinski, president of the League of Conservation Voters, which opposes the Keystone bill.
