Ted Poe: “The folks I represent down in southeast Texas are concerned about many things; but two things they are concerned about…”

“The folks I represent down in southeast Texas are concerned about many things; but two things they are concerned about probably the most are jobs and energy, because, you see, in southeast Texas, that's still the energy capital of the United States. I probably represent more refineries than any Member of Congress. There is an answer to jobs and energy, and it's called the Trans- Canada pipeline, commonly called the Keystone XL pipeline. The plan is for our allies in Canada to ship crude oil from Alberta, Canada, through a pipeline all the way from Alberta, Canada, down to Port Arthur, Texas. Most Americans have never heard of Port Arthur, Texas, but it sits on the gulf coast, really close to the Louisiana- Texas border. It is part of that energy development going all the way back to Spindletop days in 1901--the energy capital of the world. The plan has been, for several years, to ship that crude oil down to American refineries and have them refine. That decision, or that request to get a permit, started about 3 years ago, and no decision has been reached yet on whether to build it or not to build it. The latest development is that the administration has decided: Still, we'll not make a decision until 2013, after the elections.…”