House Republicans rail against Obama's decision to reject Keystone

Several House Republicans on Wednesday afternoon called on President Obama to reverse his expected decision to reject the permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline, saying the decision is a short-sighted one that would hurt both jobs and U.S. energy independence.

"It's not too often that the president of the United States has the opportunity, with one swipe of his pen, to increase private sector jobs by thousands of employees, while at the same time increasing our energy independency and energy security," Rep. Ben Quayle (R-Ariz.) said on the House floor.

"This is the wrong decision at the wrong time," Quayle added. "We need better decisions from the administration."

"This administration has done everything it can to stand in the way of a project that can help 100,000 Americans get back to work," said Rep. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.). "Mr. President, don't put a cork in our economy. Let's get this pipeline built."

Rep. Ted Poe (R-Texas) added that if the administration rejects the pipeline, "the administration chooses poorly."

Pennsylvania Rep. Jason Altmire was the only Democrat to speak against the White House decision.

"I ask that the president reconsider his reported rejection of the project," he said.

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