Supporting Keystone XL Pipeline

Floor Speech

Mr. NUNNELEE. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in support of the Keystone XL pipeline.

Opponents of this pipeline claim it will damage the environment, that it will ship oil from Canada to China, and that increasing the supply of oil will somehow raise gas prices.

The truth is that this pipeline has been through the most thorough environmental review of any pipeline in history, the oil carried by it will go to American markets, and it will help lower energy prices by moving capacity from growing basins in Canada, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and west Texas that are comparable in volume to nearly half of the U.S. Persian Gulf imports.

The Keystone XL pipeline will also benefit America by increasing the percentage of our energy supply provided by a stable neighbor and ally. More North American oil means less oil from Venezuela and Iran. This pipeline will create 20,000 high-wage construction jobs and 100,000 indirect jobs. Keystone XL will also provide a new and stable supply access to gulf coast refiners, like the one in Pascagoula, Mississippi, who set the price of gasoline and are vulnerable to OPEC and supply disruptions. We in the House are focused on jobs and the economy, and this pipeline is an obvious, direct example of what real stimulus looks like--stimulus that comes from the private economy and produces real value.

The fact of the matter is that Canada is going to develop their resources, and if we do not want their oil, that supply will go elsewhere to our competitors such as China. The Canadians have the supply, and we have the demand. And the Keystone XL pipeline has gone through a rigorous environmental review. There's no reason not to move forward with this vital project. The President needs to get off the campaign trail long enough to get his administration out of the way so that the Keystone XL pipeline can be developed.

Source