Blog: Jobs in the Pipeline

Statement

"Oil (prices) rising as storms cut production," reads a headline today. The latest tropical storm has forced 131 oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico to close, cutting production, raising gas prices for American consumers. Another hit on our battered economy.

This storm may be an act of God, but when considering our misguided energy policies, the damage increasingly seems like a self-inflicted wound.

It's elementary to say that increased energy supply and infrastructure is critical to lowering energy prices. One answer is the Keystone XL project, a $7 billion extension of a pipeline running from Canada's Alberta oil-sands region to Gulf Coast refineries. It is expected to boost capacity to over one million barrels a day, up from 591,000 barrels. An Obama Administration official testified to the Foreign Affairs Committee in March that "...from a national and energy security perspective, the importance of Keystone XL to U.S. energy security is fundamental and irrefutable."

And then there are the jobs. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce says 250,000. That's pipeline construction and operation, refinery and associated jobs. Maybe that's high. But with the economy we're suffering, you'd think the White House would get excited about 250 new jobs. One union leader said the pipeline's a "job engine for the country."

To paraphrase the President this week - unions are onboard, business is onboard, we just need to get the White House onboard… Keystone XL approval has been stuck in State Department bureaucracy for nearly three years.

We're lucky to be next door to Canada, with its vast oil reserves, second only to Saudi Arabia. Currently almost all of its petroleum exports go to the U.S. But it's looking elsewhere. Another pipeline option would cross British Columbia, ending at its western coast, where oil would be shipped to China. Chinese firms are buying stakes in Canadian oil-sands projects. Japanese and Korean firms have completed several major energy deals in western Canada. Canada badly wants Keystone XL. Are we really going to say "no" to being part of this action?

The State Department is expected to issue a final environmental review this month. It has already found that the project will have "limited adverse environmental impacts," according to reports. Next the White House must certify that the pipeline is in the "national interest." Amazingly, the Administration has said it needs until the end of the year to make that easy call.

I did my part by backing a bill that passed the House in July that forces that decision earlier, by November 1 at the latest. Mr. President, don't wait -- let's hear a big loud "yes" during this week's jobs speech to Congress.

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