Boehner: House Will Likely Attach Keystone Approval to New Jobs Bill
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House Speaker John Boehner is interviewed on "This Week."
Speaker John Boehner says that the House will try again to tie approval for the Keystone pipeline project to a new jobs bill being introduced next week.
“All options are on the table. If it’s not enacted before we take up the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, it’ll be part of it,” Boehner said of the Keystone project, which would extend an oil pipeline from Canada through the United States.
Boehner led an unsuccessful effort to attach approval of the Keystone project to the extension of the payroll tax cut in December, but had to back down after not securing Senate support.
The Obama administration declined approval for the pipeline extension after saying they did not have enough time to study the environmental impact, drawing criticism from conservatives who say the project would create needed jobs.
“Now that the president has decided for political reasons that we’re not going to move ahead just yet, not until after the election… we’re going to have to find another way to lean on the Senate, to take this issue up, because the Keystone pipeline will create … over 100,000 indirect jobs,” Boehner told me on “This Week.”
“This is the epitome of a shovel-ready job project that the president ought to be approving,” Boehner added. ”And if he won’t, then let’s let the Congress approve it.”
While Republicans will likely tie the Keystone project to the new jobs bill, Boehner said that “there will be no earmarks in this bill.”
“One of our great successes of last year is that we passed all these bills, done good work, working with the Senate, with no earmarks,” Boehner said.
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I would be for this compromise. It will create jobs all around. The president can get part of his jobs bill approved, and the republicans can have the Oil Pipeline. This is the sort of compromise that the American people would likely accept, and it would be a win-win for everyone. Hopefully the House has learned “My way or the highway” routine will not work. The system is based on compromise.
Posted by: slipknot | January 29, 2012, 12:22 pm 12:22 pm
Are you willing to hear the bottom line? We are 15+ Trillion dollars in debt and adding 3 billion more each day. ONLY mass inflation can solve this debt! Yes governments love high gas prices, every increase in gas prices increases inflation, but the USA government does not even include gas or food prices in the inflation index. Another lie politicians tell us.
Posted by: Randy Runamuck | January 29, 2012, 12:24 pm 12:24 pm
That bill will be tabled, the moment it gets to Reid. Obama opposes it, so just as if Obama himself was leader of the Senate, Reid will table it. It will NEVER come up for vote.
The government is in the throes of corruption, the like of which, has never been seen in this country before……..EVER!
Posted by: Rick McDaniel | January 29, 2012, 12:42 pm 12:42 pm
What a bunch of political losers the repubs have become. This bill will be tabled and the public will blame them for doing nothing. Giving a handout to the oil industry, lying about supposed job creation, and trying to force this on the American public without proper study on the environmental impact, all through strong arm tactics.
The coming landslide and loss of the House is going to be awesome. These losers need to be removed from any kind of power whatsoever.
Posted by: Ed in NJ | January 29, 2012, 1:24 pm 1:24 pm
The government is in the throes of corruption, the like of which, has never been seen in this country before……..EVER!
Posted by: Rick McDaniel | January 29, 2012, 12:42 pm 12:42 pm
Watergate – Nixon. Iran/Contra – Reagan. Nothing now comes close.
Posted by: James | January 29, 2012, 1:24 pm 1:24 pm
We are dependent on foreign oil, why make it worse with Keystone? Canada is a foreign country, people!
Posted by: you | January 29, 2012, 2:09 pm 2:09 pm
keystone will carry an amount of oil equal to half our consumption of middle east oil. democrats pretend that this is a minor supply source, but that’s delusional.
the US has more oil in tar sands and more frackable natural gas that we need to become energy independent.
our middle east dependency, the bleed of our resources to foreigners, and the malignancy of expensive energy for our economy are now strictly albatrosses around the necks of democrats.
Posted by: apetra | January 29, 2012, 2:25 pm 2:25 pm
Good. I’m glad to see John Boehner keep up the pressure to promote job creating legislation. Senator Reid and Obama have opposed the House’s positive policies for two years now. Eventually, maybe the public will see that the Republicans are on their side. They want more jobs, better jobs, lower gas and oil prices and a better economy for us all.
Obama and Reid continue to push for pie in the sky green energy boondoggles, job killing policies and a much poorer and meager existence for everyone. OMG….Obama Must Go!!
Posted by: BubblerDad | January 29, 2012, 2:56 pm 2:56 pm
It’s about the Jobs….Right
“the fact that Boehner had invested money in all seven companies that stand to make a profit from the pipeline being built.”
Posted by: Bill Marlow | January 29, 2012, 3:05 pm 3:05 pm
As a compromise I think this is a good deal. Though a lot of the Republicans who want it are lining their pockets with behind the scenes deals from construction and transportation contracts with this deal.
Posted by: Joe | January 29, 2012, 3:37 pm 3:37 pm
John Boehner needs to sober-up. Hydrogen fuel is only a few years away. The keystone pipeline is obsolete in its blue print. John should save his money for his next case of Smirnoff.
Posted by: dustin97sc | January 29, 2012, 3:56 pm 3:56 pm
You @ 2:09
The oil from Canada in the Keystone pipeline is for export, not for use here in the states! Betcha Fox and Friends wouldn’t tell you that!
Posted by: John Bullhorse | January 29, 2012, 3:58 pm 3:58 pm
What part of ‘Nevada doesn’t want it’ does no one understand. The pipeline is slated to go through VERY sensitive lands and I for one would rather have nature preserved in some parts of this Country. We have already re-opened sales of oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico, drilling too deep to fix another major problem, just like before! I do not eat local seafood because of this.
Posted by: Sally | January 29, 2012, 3:58 pm 3:58 pm
why are repulbicans so adament about this pipeline?let them tell the american people that it will help them out financally and prove it.there is no way that it would create that many jobs.this would be another joke,just ask the people of california.their repulbican governor awarded the bridge rebuilding to china and all material will be imported
Posted by: guy | January 29, 2012, 4:13 pm 4:13 pm
And Keystone has stated they couldn’t guarantee the jobs will go to Americans. And people really support this stuff? And oil goes on the open market, this is really sad if Americans believe it will lower prices at the pump, not only that, temporary jobs.
Posted by: emerald_sparks | January 29, 2012, 4:16 pm 4:16 pm
What “jobs” bill? If the jobs bill was introduced by Republicans containing nothing but the usual more tax cuts for the rich and regulations cuts that will do nothing to actually create jobs than he’s just doing this for political fodder and to let big oil know the GOP’s got there back and it likely won’t go anywhere beyond FOX News propaganda. If this is a true attempt to work WITH democrats and move some of the long needed rebuilding of our infrastructure forward that the President has been calling for then, you know President Obama would sign it without hesitation. More than likely it’s the former and just another political game being played by Boehner.
Posted by: dan | January 29, 2012, 4:26 pm 4:26 pm
Emerald_Sparks is absolutely correct. ALL oil regardless of where it is pumped goes on the world open market. This project will not bring down gas prices in America. Current gas prices are artificially inflated by Wall Street. The very same Wall Street the GOP will give their political careers and throw American’s under the bus to protect. “Corporations are people too, my friend” (LOL)
Posted by: dan | January 29, 2012, 4:34 pm 4:34 pm
Big oil has had their way for too long. I think Obama should keep on gambling with tax dollars on companies like Solyndra and the other “green” companies that continue to fail and are slush funds for democrats. Is there a democrat remaining that has any common sense?
Posted by: David Christensen | January 29, 2012, 4:38 pm 4:38 pm
“The Obama administration declined approval for the pipeline extension after saying they did not have enough time to study the environmental impact,… ”
It’s only been studied for the last 3 years.
But one can’t help but be amused by the comments here that increased oil availability does not decrease prices. One only needs to watch the prices on the spot market every time oil inventories are reported.
Posted by: Cowboy | January 29, 2012, 5:04 pm 5:04 pm
Maybe if some Obama campaign contributors and bundlers had an investment in Keystone, things would have been cleared more expeditiously.
Like Solyndra and Lightsquared.
Posted by: GarandFan | January 29, 2012, 6:11 pm 6:11 pm
That is what compromise is all about! President Obama gets wage tax extensions and the Republicans get Keystone jobs and energy! Yhis is a Win/Win for the American people!
Posted by: Common _ Sense | January 29, 2012, 6:30 pm 6:30 pm
Cowboy — current unleaded gas prices around the country run from around $3.00 to $3.80. There’s about a $0.80 difference between CA and UT with CA being on the higher end. They have very similar taxes so don’t even try to blame it on taxes. Utah’s is $0.245 flat and CA is $0.18 + local add-on’s. Just the variation between gas stations and gas costs around the country show that a single pipeline pushing sludge mixed with hazardous chemicals will likely not do much to drop the price of gas. Again, ALL oil is traded on the world market and is subject to Wall Street speculation. The undisputable facts are that Wall Street has NO problems inflating stock prices to put more money in the hands of investors and oil companies have no problems inflating costs to put more money in the pockets of CEO’s.
The oil industry has made massive record profits in recent years and it has had NOTHING to do with oil production and/or availability.
Posted by: dan | January 29, 2012, 6:41 pm 6:41 pm
I wish they would vote on each of these issues separately on their own merits. After the fiasco in the gulf I’m not sure that I’m willing to risk the water supply for America’s breadbasket on the oil industry.
Posted by: steve | January 29, 2012, 6:42 pm 6:42 pm
Once again we see the consistently inconsitent Republcians. This is exactly the sort of thing they’d be sceaming about the Democrats did it with a Republcan President. And have.
Posted by: mike | January 29, 2012, 7:03 pm 7:03 pm
Linking the pipeline to other legislation just shows how really trivial the whole issue is on it’s own. For all the alleged benefits it’s being touted as having (energy independence, lower gas prices, significant long term jobs, a virtual economic turnaround for the nation, environmental safety) then linking it to other legislation would be the ridiculous equivalent of linking something like the elimination of our national air defenses to some unrelated legislative issue. The fact that the House GOP is even willing to consider handling it in the way that they are just proves how low it is on anyone’s priority list, except as an expendable political weapon for the House GOP to use in Congress against the Senate GOP and of course, against Obama’s re-election.
Posted by: sameagain | January 30, 2012, 8:42 am 8:42 am
Keystone XL is a bad idea.
It’s an export pipeline.
The #1 export in the USA last year was fuel, how will adding more crude to the refineries do anything but raise domestic prices.
What a patriotic idea it is to allow a foreign company to use eminent domain rights to take land from Americans!
Wake up America, it’s a scam!!
Posted by: @blob_fish | February 1, 2012, 4:43 pm 4:43 pm