Congress officially cleared the Keystone XL bill yesterday, sending the bill to President Obama’s desk. Obama has already threatened to veto the measure. The AP,
Supporters were already strategizing on how to secure the pipeline’s approval using other legislative means.
“The evidence is in. The case ought to be closed,” said Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Sen. John Hoeven of North Dakota, the chief Republican sponsor of the bill, said in a statement “we will continue to press for approval by attaching an approval measure to another bill, perhaps an energy bill or must-pass appropriations legislation.”
Obama “needs to work with Congress in a bipartisan way and approve the Keystone XL pipeline project for the American people,” he said.
For Republicans, the bill’s passage capped weeks of debate on a top priority after they took control of Congress last month. Hours before the vote, they prodded Democrats who did not take their side. House Republicans, who have debated and passed numerous measures on the pipeline only to have them dead end in the Senate, claimed victory.
