The Left has frequently salivated over Obama’s post-partisan mojo. This post-partisan rhetoric has been so much hot-air, all show and no stay. Remember the president’s speech shortly after the unspeakable tragedy in Tucson wherein he said, “But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized – at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who think differently than we do – it’s important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we are talking with each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds.” How quickly those words were forgotten by the man who uttered them.
Hope of civility and bipartisan cooperation soon evaporated. President Obama wasted no time blaming Republicans for wanting dirty air and dirty water and not caring about the middle class who have suffered the most under his failed policies. He has prioritized his support for his friends in the labor unions while ignoring the failure of Senate Democrats to pass a budget in nearly 1000 days. He has done nothing since his Tucson speech to indicate he is post-partisan; indeed he has simply heated up his rhetoric against Republicans. His decision to reject the Keystone pipeline is just the latest far-Left pandering by his administration; in fact here is what Senate Democrats had to say about the Keystone Pipeline project,
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA): “Landrieu says she’d support Keystone in payroll/ui/doc fix bill. Says ‘good deal’of D & R support for it.” (Trish Turner, Twitter, 12/15/11)
Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK): “Another sticking point is that Republicans inserted in their bill language that would fast-track the proposed Keystone X-L oil pipeline extension from Canada down to the Lower 48. …Senator Begich is supportive of moving the project forward and his office says that’s not a problem.” (Alaska Public Radio, 12/14/11)
Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND): “I personally think the pipeline is absolutely in the national interest. It’ll help us reduce our dependence on foreign energy, at least foreign sources that are hostile to our interests… I, for one, on this side would hope that this could be part of a final package…” (Floor remarks, 12/14/11)
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO): “Well, let’s hope we can negotiate something like that… if states’ rights are being protected and if this is going to be something maybe that we can try to jumpstart the approval process, make it go more quickly.” (MSNBC, 12/14/11)
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV): “I am for the Keystone pipeline. … everyone’s for it, it creates thousands of jobs!” (Fox News, 12/12/11)
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT): “I am proud to again offer my support for the Keystone XL pipeline and the jobs it will create. We need a quicker decision, based on the merits of this project.” (Floor Remarks, 12/13/11)
Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC): “I’m very much for the pipeline. There is no question about that.” (MSNBC, 12/14/11)
Rep. Dan Boren (D-OK): “I commend the Speaker for including the construction of the Keystone XL pipelinethat is supported by business and labor.” (Release, 12/12/11)
Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA): “‘I think the president’s wrong on this,’ said Cardoza, who is retiring after this Congress. ‘He can veto whatever he wants, but those are both policies I support.'” (POLITICO, 12/7/11)
Rep. Gene Green (D-TX): “Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas) said he’s not swayed by Obama’s veiled veto pledge. … ‘The Keystone is awfully important,’ Green said.” (POLITICO, 12/8/11)
Speaker Boehner, in a blog piece written on 12/16/11, quite correctly stated,
Again, these are all things Democrats have said in the week since the leader of their party said he would “reject” Keystone’s inclusion in a jobs bill extending payroll tax relief and unemployment insurance. For months now, Democrats have joined Republicans in supporting the pipeline – which is also backed by a broad-based coalition including organized labor – because it would help create jobs for workers struggling in President Obama’s economy.
It is unfortunate the president has decided to side with his radical leftist, environmental and green energy compatriots at the expense of jobs and energy independence for the U.S. The importance of winning this election in the executive and legislative branches cannot be overstated.
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