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December 8, 2011

Obama Rejects Linking Keystone to Payroll Tax Cut 
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President Obama has dismissed a Republican attempt to link passage of a
Social Security payroll tax cut to support for the proposed Keystone XL
oil pipeline. Republican leaders have suggested they could back the tax
cut in return for Obama's immediate approval of Keystone, instead of
delaying a decision until next year. At a news conference with Canadian
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Obama rejected drawing a link between the
tax cut and Keystone.

President Obama: "Any effort to try to tie Keystone to the payroll tax
cut, I will reject. Everybody should be on notice. The reason is because
the payroll tax cut is something House Republicans and Senate
Republicans should want to do regardless of any other issues."



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