Editorial: President Obama will be sending a clear message with Keystone XL decision

In Case You Missed It... The Oklahoman Editorial: President Obama will be sending a clear message with Keystone XL decision Published: January 18, 2012

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Link to Editorial OKLAHOMANS should hope President Barack Obama eventually comes to his senses and gives the go-ahead to construction of TransCanada Corp.'s Keystone XL pipeline, because it will mean jobs and revenue for our state. The pipeline, which would move oil from the tar sands of Canada to the Gulf Coast, seemed headed for approval before the administration, in a nod to environmentalists, changed course in November and said the project would be delayed until 2013 to allow further study. This came after three years of study, including the State Department's environmental review. Why propose waiting until 2013? Because there's an election first.

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But in the December deal to extend the payroll tax cut by two months, Republicans stipulated that the president move up his deadline. Obama now has until Feb. 21 to make up his mind, although the State Department has said that isn't enough time to weigh the pros and cons of a new route through Nebraska. The impact the project would have on Oklahoma was detailed last week by Robert Jones, vice president of Keystone Pipelines, during a visit to Oklahoma City. Of the estimated 20,000 jobs that would be created by the pipeline, Jones said 1,200 would be in Oklahoma as TransCanada extends its pipeline south from Cushing.

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