GREAT FALLS — Elected officials from the U.S. and Canada on Tuesday discussed concerns about President Joe Biden’s decision to temporarily stop construction of the Keystone XL pipeline.
The virtual forum was hosted by U.S. Rep. David McKinley of West Virginia.
Among concerns discussed were the economic impact that cancelling the pipeline is expected to have on counties, including some in Montana, that the pipeline would pass through.
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen spoke during the forum, saying the president doesn’t have the authority to shut down the pipeline.
"The regulation of foreign and interstate commerce is a power reserved to Congress. That means the president's actions here are unconstitutional. He can't simply step in and kill an entire dual-nation and multi-state system of commerce,” Knudsen said.
Opponents of the pipeline are concerned about the environmental impact it might have, and some tribes worry it will harm their water supply.
