Kansas, Missouri Republicans denounce pipeline decision

Reaction is rolling in from local lawmakers regarding the Keystone pipeline decision. If you haven’t heard, the White House has nixed the deal.

Republicans aren’t happy.

Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo.: “President Obama didn’t just reject a pipeline today, he rejected tens of thousands of new, good-paying American jobs. The Keystone XL pipeline is a ‘shovel ready’ project that would put more Americans to work, and pump more than 800,000 barrels of oil a day to U.S. refineries, reducing our dependence on hostile energy sources.”

Rep. Kevin Yoder, R-Kan.: “I’m disappointed the Obama Administration has yet again placed partisan political ideology over thousands of new American jobs and another step towards American energy independence. …There’s no viable reason for today’s decision. It’s time to build.”

Rep. Lynn Jenkins, R-Kan.: “The President’s decision shows his willingness to cost the American economy tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in revenue, rather than stand up to the extremes of his own party.”

Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo.: “The decision to approve the Keystone XL pipeline should have never been a question. President Obama claims the jobs created by this project are only temporary, but that argument is oversimplified and misleading. No construction job is permanent, but all benefit our economy.”

Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan.: “I had hoped the President would rise to the occasion, put commonsense above ideology, American jobs over a liberal agenda and make the long overdue Keystone Pipeline a reality. Instead, it appears the President is posturing in advance of the Paris climate talks in a desperate attempt to strike a climate deal that will also not meet the approval of the American people.”

This story was originally published November 6, 2015 at 1:11 PM with the headline "Kansas, Missouri Republicans denounce pipeline decision."