McCaskill will vote to override Obama’s veto of Keystone bill

Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill said on Tuesday that she will vote to override President Barack Obama’s veto of a bill that would approve construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline.

Obama vetoed the bill on Tuesday, saying it conflicts the executive branch’s authority to determine whether a cross-border pipeline is in the national interest.

McCaskill, a Democrat, already had bucked her party to vote in favor of the bill. She’s a longtime supporter of the pipeline, which she says would be safe and benefit the economy.

“When our own State Department review shows that this oil is coming out of the ground, it’s only a question of how, then the decision to be made is this — what is the safest way to move it to market?” McCaskill said in a statement after the president’s veto.

“Pipelines are better than barges or trains,” the senator said. “That’s common sense, and I will vote to override this veto.”

McCaskill’s Republican colleague from Missouri, Sen. Roy Blunt, blasted Obama for his veto on Tuesday. Blunt was a cosponsor for the Keystone bill.

“Once again, President Obama showed the nation he's more concerned about appeasing his political allies than creating good-paying jobs for American families and workers,” Blunt said in a statement. “People in Missouri and nationwide deserve better.”

Two-thirds of members in both the Senate and House of Representatives would have to vote to override the veto, a scenario that isn’t looking very likely.

The bill passed the Senate 62-36 and the House 270-152, so proponents would have to pick up a significant number of votes for a veto-proof majority.

This story was originally published February 24, 2015 at 4:58 PM with the headline "McCaskill will vote to override Obama’s veto of Keystone bill."