John Ratcliffe: “I thank the gentleman from Florida for yielding me this time. This week, I was honored and grateful to be able to vote…”

“I thank the gentleman from Florida for yielding me this time. This week, I was honored and grateful to be able to vote for and help pass several bills that will improve the lives of so many hardworking Americans. Earlier today, I was proud to be an original cosponsor of H.R. 3, the Keystone XL Pipeline Act. I am grateful to be pushing this bill across the finish line because the Keystone runs through the Fourth Congressional District that I am privileged to represent. It is a long overdue, commonsense piece of legislation which will create good-paying jobs, will grow our economy, and will support more manufacturing and trade in this country. During its construction, it is estimated that 42,000 jobs will be created by the Keystone, and it will put more than $2 billion in the pockets of American workers. {time} 1400 To put this impact in perspective, those 42,000 jobs are 12,000 more than the unemployed population in the Fourth Congressional District of Texas. Unfortunately, President Obama has indicated that he will veto the Keystone if it passes both Houses. I hope that this is just an idle political threat because, if it is not, then the President is intentionally harming the middle class Americans that this great job creation bill is going to help. I hope and pray that our President won't play politics with legislation that will provide opportunities to create jobs for tens of thousands of Americans to support their families.…”