"Indeed, this is a battle not so much about the environment or economic development as much as it is about political control."

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Our View: Energy policy vs. energy politics
NOTHING IS SIMPLE WHEN IT COMES TO FUELING AMERICA
By Coos Bay World, February 25, 2015

President Barack Obama’s veto Tuesday of Congress’ bill to authorize construction of the Keystone XL pipeline is being portrayed as a simple battle between liberals and conservatives, progress and obstructionism, jobs and environmentalism.

Fact is, though, that about the only thing simple in this confrontation is the simplistic construct created by a GOP-controlled Congress that can’t even muster the votes to override the president’s veto.

According to The Associated Press story earlier this week, Republicans haven’t shown they can amass the two-thirds majority.

"(Obama) is looking at this as showing he still can be king of the hill, because we don't have the votes to override," said Republican Sen. Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma.

Indeed, this is a battle not so much about the environment or economic development as much as it is about political control.

The bill the president rejected was basically a power grab by Congress to snatch away from the State Department the duty of issuing a permit to TransCanada to build the $8 billion pipeline from the Canadian border to Nebraska. That responsibility lies with the Obama administration, but lawmakers wanted to flex their muscles and gain political points with voters with promises of jobs.

But those promises are just enticements of instant gratification. And the veto doesn’t mean the project is dead. The State Department and the Environmental Protection Agency are still reviewing and may still eventually approve it.

Certainly, there are all kinds of arguments in opposition to the pipeline, and they all aren’t environmental. Just ask property owners in Nebraska who are fighting the spectre of eminent domain to take lands for the pipe route. And in South Dakota, TransCanada is still waiting on that state’s Public Utilities Commission approval.

So, it’s not just the Obama administration that seems to be standing in the way of pipe getting laid.

We’d do well to remember this as we watch the process to decide whether and when Canadian company Veresen ever gets its Jordan Cove Energy Project off the ground. No matter which side of the debate you’re on, you no doubt feel frustrated because power isn’t being wielded the way you want, and obstacles keep complicating what should be a slam dunk.

But when it comes to politics and energy, nothing is ever a slam dunk.
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