Washington, D.C., March 26, 2012  – Oops.  President Obama was caught Monday on a live microphone asking outgoing Russian President Dmitry Medvedev for more “space” on missile defense. “This is my last election,” Obama said. “After my election, I have more flexibility.”  This raises the question: What other important policy matters is the President is putting on hold until after the election?

Obama put off dealing with the Keystone Pipeline, thus avoiding a politically difficult decision in a situation that pitted Obama’s backers in the environmental movement against those in organized labor. Obama put the nation’s energy security at risk because he was worried about political ramifications.

“Whether it’s the Keystone XL Pipeline or missile defense, the president puts political calculations ahead of the national interest. How very un-presidential,” said CEI senior fellow Marlo Lewis.

“The President’s hot mic gaff reveals the Obama administration’s agenda of putting political ambitions ahead of the country,: said CEI Labor Policy Counsel Vincent Vernuccio. “In January, Obama rejected making a decision on the Keystone Pipeline because of what the White House called an ‘arbitrary deadline.’ But the President’s comments today show that the only problem with the deadline is that it came before his re-election and forced him to choose between his extreme environmentalist supporters and his labor union allies.

“Every union member who could have worked on the pipeline should be furious with Obama again today,” said Vernuccio. “It is now even more clear that for political reasons he stopped 20,000 jobs from being created. Likewise, every American should now be angry with the president for his failed energy policy that is now socking us with gas prices at historic highs. It is time the president puts the country above his reelection efforts.”

See also:
Keystone and the Unions

Obama Punts on Keystone Pipeline: Political Cynicism in the Guise of Energy Policy

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