The Senate is 4 votes short of overriding President Obama's veto for the Keystone XL pipeline. Keystone XL is a 1,179 mile pipeline that will stretch from Alaska to Texas that the House passed. Obama's main reason for not supporting the bill is because if passed the construction of the pipeline will be out of government authority, and the pipeline would have to pass through foreign land. The veto override got 63 votes, but was 4 votes short of the needed two-thirds of Congress. Even though the pipeline was vetoed many believe the debate is still going to continue after Obama finishes his presidency.
Even though the Senate didn't succeed in overriding veto, the vote was the U.S. government's checks and balances in action. The president as an executive power can veto a bill sent by congress, but then the congress then can counteract a veto with two-thirds of the Congress voting to override. James Monroe was known for vetoing against the Cumberland Road that would of supported its construction. At the time there was a large debate on the government's presence in infrastructure. Monroe's veto is similar to President Obama's veto in that they both regard to infrastructure and the limits of government involvement.
Source: http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/11/politics/hoeven-senate-4-votes-short-on-keystone-veto-override/index.html
No comments:
Post a Comment