Hoeven Statement on the President's Threat to Veto His Keystone XL Approval Bill

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today issued the following statement in response to White House spokesman Josh Earnest’s statement that President Obama won’t sign the senator’s Keystone XL approval bill if it passes Congress:

“President Obama’s veto threat comes as no surprise. He has held the Keystone XL pipeline project up for six years with endless bureaucratic delays – his strategy has been defeat through delay. That’s unfortunate, because the Keystone XL pipeline should be approved on its merits. It’s about energy, jobs, economic growth and national security. Furthermore, the State Department in its environmental review has stated that the Keystone XL pipeline will have no significant environmental impact. That’s why the American people overwhelmingly support it, by 70 percent in the polls.

“Instead of a veto threat, the president should be joining with Congress on a bipartisan basis to approve the project for the American people, rather than blocking it on behalf of special interest groups. He now says he’ll veto legislation to approve it.

“The president’s spokesman Josh Earnest today said: ‘There is already a well-established process in place to consider whether infrastructure projects like this are in the best interest of the country.’

“But the president has undermined this process with endless delays. I will continue to do all I can to work in a bipartisan way to advance this and other legislation important to the American people and our country.”

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