WASHINGTON, D.C. – Republicans were furious Tuesday night after Democrats in the Senate were able to fight off once again passage of a bill that would have advanced the Keystone Pipeline project.
The U.S. House last week passed a similar bill that would have moved the controversial project closer to moving ahead, but Tuesday, by a vote of 59-41, the Senate rejected its own version of the bill. 60 votes were needed to pass. Still underway is a review of the project by the State Department, and the bill could come back again in the near future. The Keystone Pipeline would transport oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, and environmentalists largely oppose its construction. It has been reported that 40% of the pipeline is already done. Some Indian tribes have said that the project, if approved, would be a “declaration of war”. President Barack Obama likely would have vetoed the bill if it had arrived at his desk.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky made the following statement tonight after Democrats defeated the legislation:
“Tonight, Senate Democrats once again stood in the way of a shovel-ready jobs project that would help thousands of Americans find work — a remarkable stance after an election in which the American people sent a clear message to Congress to approve serious policies like the Keystone XL Pipeline and get the Senate working again. Unfortunately, many Senate Democrats failed to hear that message. But once the 114th Congress convenes, the Senate will act again on this important legislation, and I look forward to the new Republican majority taking up and passing the Keystone jobs bill early in the New Year.”
Republicans vowed to bring the issue back for a vote once the lame-duck Senators leave office and their party has a majority, next year.
