Responding to criticism from Republicans for supposedly stonewalling development of the nation’s oil supplies, President Obama has ordered the government to accelerate work on a 485-mile Texas-to-Oklahoma portion of the recently rejected 1,170-mile Keystone XL pipeline. –ARK

AP via The Guardian:

Facing fresh criticism from Republicans who blame him for gas prices near $4 a gallon, Obama announced Thursday that he was directing federal agencies to expedite a 485-mile line from Oklahoma to refineries on Texas’ Gulf Coast that would remove a critical bottleneck in the country’s oil transportation system. The directive would also apply to other pipelines that alleviate choke points.

“Anyone who says that we’re somehow suppressing domestic oil production isn’t paying attention,” Obama said, speaking at the site of the new Oklahoma project.

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