Republican George Allen is quickly turning President Obama’s decision not to approve a controversial oil pipeline into a talking point in Virginia’s open U.S. Senate race.
Allen is out with a new web video ripping Democrat Tim Kaine for siding with Obama on the Keystone XL oil pipeline, hoping to point out that this is a growing trend on the campaign trail.
The video, titled “unabashed,” is 75 seconds and is a montage of newspaper clips and footage critical of both Obama’s decision and Kaine’s support. Like other anti-Kaine videos in recent months, it also shows footage of a speech in which the Democrat said he was an “unabashed supporter of the president.”
Kaine goes on to say, “I’m not going to run as distancing myself from the president.”
Proponents of the pipeline, which include labor groups friendly to Obama and Kaine, tout it as a good for the economy and job creation. But opponents worried about the environmental impact and questioned the validity of claims it would be an economic boon.
</div> <p>Allen moved swiftly to criticize Obama, calling it a “disappointing continuation of the counterproductive energy policies that are punishing working families and small business owners with unnecessarily high fuel and energy costs.”</p> <p>Kaine, who served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee under Obama, aligned himself with the president and scoffed at Republicans for forcing a “hasty decision.” Obama initially intended to wait until after November to make a call but Republicans tied a quick the decision into tax cut negotiations.</p> <p>“Allen’s calls for approval of the Keystone Pipeline began even before the states actually impacted by this project had a chance to complete their reviews,” Kaine said. “As a former governor, I would never support overriding the concerns of the affected states in order to rush a project of this magnitude.”</p>
