President Obama continues to delay approval for construction of the northern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline, a $5.3 billion project that would bring Canadian oil sands production to U.S. refineries on the Gulf Coast.
When the president speaks publicly about the project, his remarks are misguided, vague and noncommittal. In an interview he gave to The New York Times in July, for example, the president responded to a reporter’s comment that many labor unions support the project. “Well, look, they might like to see 2,000 jobs initially,” said Mr. Obama. “But that is a blip relative to the need. So what we also know is, is that oil is going to be piped down to the Gulf to be sold on the world oil markets, so it does not bring down gas prices
here in the United States.”
If these comments represent the economic principles the president is using to evaluate the Keystone XL pipeline, we’re in a lot of serious trouble.