WASHINGTON – Alberta’s premier says he’s optimistic that a presidential veto won’t spell the end of the Keystone XL pipeline debate in the United States.
Jim Prentice is in the U.S. capital for meetings on a variety of subjects, including the controversial pipeline.
He says everything he’s hearing suggests President Barack Obama will veto a Keystone bill that just made it through Congress — and that the discussion will continue.
READ MORE: Keystone XL pipeline clears hurdle in U.S. Senate despite Obama veto threat
Prentice says the likely next step is that lawmakers will attach a pipeline provision to other legislation and send it to the president. One Republican has already mused that Keystone could become part of a big infrastructure-funding bill.
Prentice held more than a half-dozen meetings on Monday in Washington during a U.S. trip.
READ MORE: Prentice to lobby Washington about Keystone XL pipeline
His interlocutors included the head of the World Bank, the chief-operating officer of the Inter-American Development Bank, lawmakers, think-tanks, the Washington Post editorial board, and members of the Obama administration.
One of those administration members is the State Department official gathering input for the soon-to-be-completed Keystone regulatory process, which is separate from the legislation in Congress.
In his meetings, Prentice repeatedly promoted Alberta’s attempts to reduce emissions from the oilsands.
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