Washington – A coalition of 21 attorneys general has sued President Biden and members of his administration over revoking the Keystone XL pipeline permit, trying to undo the president’s attempt to effectively destroy the 1,200-kilometer pipeline to make.
Led by the Texas and Montana attorneys general, the states argued in their complaint that the president exceeded his authority when he issued his executive order on Jan. 20 to revoke oil pipeline permits. The assignment directed at Keystone was one of several executive actions that Mr. Biden has taken over since taking over the presidency, focusing on the environment and addressing climate change.
“The revocation of the Keystone XL pipeline license is a regulation of interstate and international trade, which can only take place as any other law can: through the process of bipartisanism and presentation,” the states argued in their complaint. “The president does not have the power to put in place his’ ambitious plan ‘to reform the economy in spite of Congress’ unwillingness to do so.”
The Attorney General argued that Congress had established rules for the actions that the President could take with respect to Keystone, and Mr. Biden and senior members of his government disregarded these rules.
The Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton, told Mr. Biden is accused of acting ‘with’ complete disregard of the constitutional restrictions on his power ‘.
The Keystone XL pipeline was designed by TC Energy Corporation to move approximately 830,000 barrels of oil from Canada and Montana to the Gulf Coast of Texas, and is part of a larger system of lines and will run through several states. While the Obama administration denied permits for the pipeline, former President Donald Trump approved the construction of the line in 2019, and work began last year.
In his order that effectively ended the pipeline, Mr. Biden said it would not serve the national interest, arguing that the US should prioritize the development of a clean energy economy, which in turn would create good jobs.
But his order left hundreds of workers unemployed, and TC Energy estimated that nearly 1,000 employees were laid off due to the action.