When it came to Sen. Mark Udall’s Obamacare vote, President Obama, then-speaker Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid could have passed a steaming pile of…BS (brussel sprouts, of course) and Udall would’ve been like, “yep, looks good to me; let me just find my rubber stamp here.” Unfortunately for those expecting Udall to show independence from them when it comes time for the Keystone XL pipeline this week, we can expect more of the same (and, really, shouldn’t we already? There’s only one way to earn a 99% vote record with Obama).
Normally, for a middle-of-the-road, independent-spirited state like Colorado, the Keystone vote would be a no-brainer. Many prominent Democrats have come out in favor of it. The State Department’s own environmental assessment of it says the environmental impact would be negligible at worst. Hell, it will even create good-paying jobs in Colorado, though the pipeline doesn’t pass through us. Yet, we here at The Peak publically declare we will forsake whiskey, publically declare America is not the greatest nation ever, and slap our mommas in the face if Udall votes “yay” on the Keystone XL pipeline. It’s not that we risk such sacred things likely; just that we got one-hundred million reasons to believe we aren’t risking anything at all. Not to mention, our own sources informing us of what Udall refuses to own up to publicly.
It’s the math that really makes Keystone bite Udall in the ass. We have 45 Republicans who are all for it; we have 11 Democratic Senators (most of whom, like Udall, are fighting for their political lives) who have already signed on to it; and, we have about 2 or 3 Democratic Senators who are suspected to be for it. This leaves us at 58 or 59 with Udall and our other Colorado Senator, Michael Bennet, yet to weigh in. Now, Bennet is reported as undecided right now (despite already voting for it before) and may feel some camaraderie with Udall, but with his own re-election two years away, does he really want to tie himself to a man sinking faster that the Broncos did in the last Super Bowl? Which means the Keystone XL pipeline could, literally, pass or fail based on Udall’s vote alone.
It’s no wonder The National Journal had an entire article titled “The Keystone Pipeline Is Ruining Mark Udall’s Week.” More like, The Keystone Pipeline is Ruining Udall’s Political Career. So pass the whiskey, PeakNation™, we’ll need something to toast with once Udall proves he has more in common with San Francisco billionaires than average Coloradans.