Video: White House backs shorter Keystone Pipeline route

>>> the highly partisan battle over the keystone pipeline rages on with the gop linking president's rejection to higher gas prices . the owner of that controversial pipeline announced it will resubmit a proposal to run its pipeline from canada to the gulf coast . transcanada will proceed with a shorter, less controversial route. the white house says it supports that new plan, but today republicans pounced.

>> we've got a handful of environmental groups , radical environmental groups who stood in the way of having a national energy policy , all of these years. it's just about time tham we have a national energy policy and do something the american people want us to do. enough of this.

>> okay. joining me now, mark, is that how you leave a room when you're upset? ha, i'm done with this.

>> did the president give the republicans an opening by saying i welcome this shorter version. he didn't say we still don't need to explore what would happen if this pipeline stretches the length it was originally proposed.

>> i'm not sure the white house gave republicans anymore opening than they already have. this is pretty tough politics for the white house and pretty good politics for republicans . you end up having environmentalists which are against the project. you have unions for it. splitting two big democratic constituent groups. you're trying to see republicans raise it time and time again no matter the context. it is important, as you just laid out, what the white house said is the pipeline from oklahoma to texas the that's not crossing a border. it has to doed with the pipeline going from canada to nebraska. that's where it's problematic. when congressional republicans through that payroll tax cut legislation, we need an answer now, the white house said all right. our mind is made up. we can't do this now. what you're seeing is transcanada trying to have a new permit that doesn't raise some environmental concerns through nebraska.

>> 66% aware of keystone pipeline believe it should be approved. 11% say they don't know. with the argument that's coming from the white house and the administration, was always that resubmit and this is a to be continued issue. it was never a complete slam of the door. when you hear some of the sound coming from the republicans today, it was as if there was a major reversal. maybe they were appealing to the 11% that don't know the facts of this story.

>> they are trying to make this into a political headache for the white house . any time the white house is budging one way or the other, they're going to be seizing on it. this thing is not a done deal at all. in a presidential election, 2012 , deep down the white house wanted to be able to make a decision like this where the politics weren't involved, which is why they delayed it to 2013 . the payroll tax cut legislation forced the white house hand temporarily to make an earlier decision than they wanted.

>> with the gas price conversation continuing, even though we seen a bit of improvement over the last 24 hours , that will filter in to the energy policy and eventually someone will not be happy. thank

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/newsnation/46560203/

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