Rep. Bill Johnson (R., Ohio) called the Keystone XL Pipeline the right thing for "America's energy independence and security" Wednesday on Fox News, touting the jobs it would create and the opportunity to become less reliant on the Middle East for oil.
The proposed $7 billion to be put into the construction of the pipeline by TransCanada, Johnson said, would create approximately 20,000 direct jobs and potentially more than 100,000 indirect jobs. The Senate approved the measure to construct the 1,700-mile pipeline that would carry tar sands from Canada to refineries in Texas on Friday, 62-37.
"You know it's going to transport over 800,000 barrels of oil a day from a friendly neighbor," Johnson said. "That's over half the amount that we import from the Middle East, and it's going to be refined in American refineries. We're going to be sending that oil and selling it to friendly countries, instead of it going to China, who's trying to compete for our jobs right here at home."
Johnson said President Obama admitted in private talks that the potential effects of Keystone XL on the environment had been overblown, and he pressed Obama on Wednesday to back its construction.
"The labor organizations are behind this effort," Johnson said. "Over 70 percent of Americans are behind this effort. The states through which the pipeline is going to run are behind this effort. It seems the only person, now that the Senate has approved it, the only person that is standing in the way is the President of the United States, and I'm hoping that he sees the reason to go forward."
Full interview: