Former President Donald Trump on Friday slammed union leaders for supporting President Joe Biden and held them responsible for “thousands of jobs” being lost following the cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline earlier this week.
“The union representing the great workers building the Keystone XL Pipeline endorsed Biden,” Trump said in a written message. “Now their workers have no jobs and the pipeline, which was well under construction (like the Southern Border Wall), has been shut down, with thousands of jobs lost and the company announcing yesterday that they are ‘permanently pulling out.'”
Trump also suggested that union workers stop paying their dues in protest.
“You should vote those people out of office immediately, and stop paying your union dues,” he said. “A total waste of money. And I said it was going to happen before the 2020 Presidential Election Hoax!”
SOUTH DAKOTANS ‘PISSED OFF’ AND ‘ANGRY’ OVER KEYSTONE CANCELLATION
Canadian developer TC Energy announced Wednesday that it pulled the plug on the Keystone XL pipeline. The decision to walk away from the $8 billion project came at a devastating cost to communities that pinned their hopes and investments on the success of the massive cross-border venture.
If the plans had stayed in place, Keystone XL would have connected two points of an existing pipeline, also called Keystone, that carries Canadian crude oil into the United States.
The fight over the pipeline has dragged on for more than a decade, and its fate has flip-flopped from one administration to the next.
The Keystone XL pipeline was first proposed in 2008. Since then, it has become a cautionary tale of what happens when economic development, climate change, and politics face off.
Former President Barack Obama rejected a key U.S. permit for the project in 2015, citing environmental concerns.
Trump reversed Obama’s decision on his third day in office and remained a steadfast supporter of the multibillion-dollar pipeline throughout his presidency.
Last year, construction began after a $1.1 billion cash infusion by the government of Alberta jump-started the project.
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Less than 12 months later, the Keystone XL was once again stopped in its tracks when Biden effectively nailed the coffin shut on his first full day in office.
