Keystone to be linked to U.S. highway bill: Boehner

[hue]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/29/us-usa-congress-keystone-idUSTRE80S0IX20120129

(Reuters) - Republican lawmakers will try to force the Obama administration to approve the Canada-to-Texas Keystone XL pipeline by attaching it to a highway bill that Congress will consider next month, House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner said on Sunday.

President Barack Obama earlier this month denied TransCanada's application for the oil sands pipeline, citing lack of time to review an alternative route within a 60-day window for action set by Congress.

Republicans have since been looking for a vehicle to resurrect the $7 billion project, and Boehner said that would be a House Republican energy and highway bill.

[Generic Other]

1. Potholes vs pipelines

What a choice.

[BlueToTheBone]

2. Unless of course, the SEC's investigation

requires you to step down to spend more time with your lawyers.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

16. How much are the oil companies paying Boehner?

[BlueToTheBone]

19. So much that he's not sharing it on the House

floor. He's socking it away in some offshore account to pad his measly retirement fund that we'll pay the bastard for the rest of his ugly life.

[denem]

3. My Way or the Highway

as always.

[Robb]

13. Writes itself, doesn't it?

[louis-t]

4. Boner will do or say ANYTHING to benefit the companies

he's invested in.

[usrname]

5. Obama should reject that legislation

and request two separate ones, one for the highway bill and one for the XL, then pass the highway bill and veto the XL. I hate bundled bills, no matter which party is in charge of congress.

[liberal N proud]

7. But this is the game they all play

If he rejects the combined bill, the GOP will use it against him in the election.

They will never give him two bills.

[XemaSab]

18. It's true:

"Obama doesn't care about the state of our highways, AND he rejected a bill that would create one million US jobs. Why doesn't Obama care about the economy? Vote Newt Gingrich, 2012."

[HopeHoops]

6. We REALLY need a clean bill amendment. This shit is getting beyond irritating.

Veto the fucker and send it back for a clean version - and then make a shitstorm out it with ads.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

8. "will try"

I'll watch.

[bhikkhu]

9. I don't suppose he's gotten the message that trying to force approval is a bad idea

...if anyone takes the blame for politicizing and sinking the chances for Keystone, it should be the repugs - they've done everything wrong from the start.

Standing off and letting the project go through the normal regulatory approval process, as long as it takes to do it right, balancing the merits and concerns of the project, should be the only acceptable way for these things to go - after the BP disaster, and the Solyndra fiasco.

[LostinRed]

10. I agree that Republicans should take the blame for sinking XL

They tried to force the President's hand. Unfortunetly, the Republican's are winning the spin game most American blame Obama and most want the XL pipeline.

[Hestia]

11. No they are not - what is with all the *they* are winning narratives?

What is with all the debbie downer posts on this board lately. Obama has been winning ever since he came out and said that the 'pugs won't work with him and have turned the game on its head. Now the publicans are having to prove themselves rather than the Dems or Obama.

[greymattermom]

12. high speed rail

Dems need to add a huge high speed rail package to the bill. Transportation and energy, right?

[BlueToTheBone]

21. or at least a huge Light Rail package

Hi speed won't work in small communities in corridors up and down, but light rail would be a wonderful commuter rail line.

[alp227]

14. if this is a mere approval request then Obama should say "No" to XL AGAIN.

[DallasNE]

15. Well, Let's See Here

How efficient is this project from the standpoint of creating jobs.

Estimates vary but a middle of the road estimate would be 2,500 temporary jobs with an advertised cost of $7 billion dollars. That comes out to $2,800,000 per job. One thing is for sure, it sucks as a job creator. Rebuilding infrastructure would a be far, far greater job creator for the same amount of money and it would create value here in America. The oil coming through pipeline will all be exported to foreign countries. Now, what kind of deal is that? Raw deal is the expression that comes to mind out of the chute.

[BlueToTheBone]

22. Yes, crossing some bridges is like taking your life into your

own hands, they are so rickety. In our small community, we had a road slide on a major artery that has moved traffic to one lane and the slide was over a year ago with no fix in sight.

[DCBob]

17. I hate these kind of tactics. This is why we have so much bad legislation.

They keep attaching crap to good bills. Its pathetic.

[cstanleytech]

20. Perhaps the dems should add their own amendment then of

adding a defense spending cap of 250 billion per year.