The Hill: Holding Obama to his word on energy projects

By Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) Link to Op-Ed President Obama's State of the Union address will undoubtedly focus on the No. 1 concern of most Americans: jobs. Yet in rejecting the Keystone XL oil pipeline, the president has just squandered the best job-creating opportunity he has ever had. Here he had the chance to strengthen energy security, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and create tens of thousands of American jobs. But he said no. Instead, he sided with his extreme left base. If the Keystone pipeline had been built, my home state of Oklahoma would have played a large role, as the pipeline was to run from Canada all the way down through Cushing, Okla., to the Gulf. Yet, in rejecting the Keystone permit, Obama still made an important commitment to Cushing. He said, "In the months ahead, we will continue to look for new ways to partner with the oil and gas industry to increase our energy security - including the potential development of an oil pipeline from Cushing, Oklahoma to the Gulf of Mexico."