Romney ad touts ‘Day One’ support for Keystone pipeline

Mitt Romney is using his first TV ad of the general election to remind voters that he really, really supports the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline.

The Republican’s ad, which was released Friday and will run in several swing states, declares that approving the Alberta-to-Texas pipeline would be among his “Day One” actions if he is elected.

“Day One, President Romney immediately approves the Keystone pipeline, creating thousands of jobs that Obama blocked,” the spot states.

Romney has been touting his support for the project for months. But the decision to highlight it in the ad — it’s the first “Day One” task mentioned in the spot — shows how much political upside Republicans see in emphasizing Keystone.

The Hill’s Justin Sink has more on the ad here.

The White House rejected a permit for Keystone in January, claiming a GOP-backed deadline in a late 2011 payroll tax cut bill would have short-circuited its review. Developer TransCanada Corp. has re-applied for a cross-border permit for the pipeline, which would bring Canadian oil sands crude to Gulf Coast refineries.

The Obama administration doesn’t plan on making a final decision until well after the 2012 elections.