Oklahoma Joins Lawsuit Against President Biden Over Keystone Pipeline

Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter joined a multistate lawsuit Wednesday seeking to overturn President Biden’s cancellation of the Keystone Pipeline, Hunter's office confirmed.

Attorneys general from 21 states on Wednesday sued to to overturn President Joe Biden’s cancellation of the contentious Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada.

Led by Ken Paxton of Texas and Austin Knudsen of Montana, the states said Biden had overstepped his authority when he revoked the permit for the Keystone pipeline on his first day in office.

In a press release Wednesday, AG Hunter said the president's actions harms Americans.

“The president doesn’t have the constitutional authority to unilaterally block this project,” Attorney General Hunter said. “It is up to Congress to approve the project, which they have done already. Further, the argument that transporting crude oil via pipeline is worse for the environment than by rail or shipment is preposterous and has been disproven numerous times, even by the Obama-Biden State Department. The Keystone Pipeline also will move the United States closer to energy independence. This will help Oklahomans and Americans by keeping costs for products and fuel down. As a fourth generation Oklahoman who has worked in the industry, I know how critical it is to our state. That is why I will do everything I can to ensure our energy sector is protected from federal overreach.”

Because the line would run through multiple U.S. states, Congress should have the final say over whether it’s built, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Texas.

Construction on the 1,200-mile (1,930-kilometer) pipeline began last year when former President Donald Trump revived the long-delayed project after it had stalled under the Obama administration.

It would move up to 830,000 barrels (35 million gallons) of crude daily from the oil sand fields of western Canada to Steele City, Nebraska, where it would connect to other pipelines that feed oil refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Biden canceled its permit over longstanding concerns that burning oil sands crude would make climate change worse.

Some moderate Democratic lawmakers also have urged Biden to reverse his decision, including Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Jon Tester of Montana.

President Biden revoked the permit for the pipeline, citing that it "disserves the U.S. national interest. The United States and the world face a climate crisis."

The full lawsuit is attached:

You can read the full Presidential Executive Order on the pipeline here.