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Pelosi Statement on President Obama’s Veto of Keystone XL Pipeline

February 24, 2015

Contact: Drew Hammill, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. – Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi today released the following statement after President Obama vetoed Keystone XL Pipeline legislation, which blatantly undermines the permitting process and puts our nation's health and security in jeopardy.

"This bill was just another Republican special-interest giveaway. It would have handed a foreign company a license-to-leak on American soil because it keeps the special favors and exemptions that allow companies that ship or refine tar sands oil to dodge paying into the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund – leaving American taxpayers to foot the bill in the event of a spill. And it would have exempted Keystone from all federal permitting requirements – including those that apply to every other construction project in the country.

"Today, President Obama stood up for our families, our economy and our environment: vetoing a bad bill that brazenly circumvents a longstanding and proven process already underway to ensure that the Keystone XL Pipeline is good for our country. Whatever one's position on building the Keystone XL Pipeline, we cannot afford to cut corners on a process that protects our communities."

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