Here are comments from the Oklahomans:

Rep. James Lankford, R-Oklahoma City:
“Jobs, state and local tax revenues and North American energy independence remain stifled while the Administration continues to stall construction of this portion of the pipeline. Keystone XL will be subject to some of the most stringent safety regulations possible. TransCanada was able to mitigate the Nebraska Governor’s concerns about the location of the pipeline, and the State Department’s draft report issued in March suggests there is no reason NOT to build the pipeline. Why does the Administration continue to stall?”

Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Cheyenne: “The Keystone Pipeline project has the potential to create 20,000 direct jobs and 118,000 indirect jobs by creating a demand for welders, pipefitters, mechanics, electricians, heavy equipment operators etc. Many of these jobs would come to Oklahoma’s Third Congressional District, as approval of the northern portion of the pipeline would carry oil from the Canadian oil sands down to Cushing, Okla. Keystone would transport 830,000 barrels of oil per day, which is nearly half of what our country imports from the Middle East.”

Rep. Markwayne Mullin, R-Westville: “The Keystone XL pipeline is extremely important to this country and to the 2nd District and I was pleased to be on the House Floor talking about its impact in my district. Since the beginning of my term I have called on the President to permit the northern leg of the project, but he continues to drag his feet. Today’s vote in the House shows how much support there is for this project.”

Cole: “I am pleased that my colleagues in the House continue fighting for construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. Not only is the project a wise investment in the future of American energy production, but it also strengthens our national security by reducing dependence on foreign oil. Through TransCanada’s willingness to invest $7 billion to begin construction, this pipeline project would directly create 20,000 jobs without expending any federal dollars. Through this expansion with our allies in Canada, the pipeline would be a vital step toward creating much-needed jobs, tightening our national security and lowering fuel prices.”

“The details on public comment are available on the State Department’s web site, but that can be difficult to navigate. We wanted to make it easy for people to find the email and physical addresses to which comments should be submitted,” Mullin said. “We hope that people will take time during the comment period to make their views on the pipeline project known. Here in Oklahoma, we are seeing the tremendous economic impact this project is having in our state.”

Mullin has also posted the draft environmental impact statement.

“People need to speak up. That is the great part about our government – that it seeks the public’s opinion. However it is the public’s responsibility to get involved and send in their comments during this limited comment period.”

Congressman Mullin has already called on President Obama to approve the northern section of the pipeline to boost the nation’s economy.

“This project has been delayed far too long while Americans have struggled with rising gas prices and a sluggish economy,” Mullin said. “New jobs and an economic boost for America are within the president’s grasp. It is time for him to finally approve this project and reduce our nation’s dependency on oil from foreign sources.”

Mailing address for public comments:

U.S. Department of State
Attn: Genevieve Walker, NEPA Coordinator
2201 C Street NW
Room 2726
Washington, D.C. 20520

Here’s a release from Mullin’s office:

Newly elected Congressman Markwayne Mullin was selected by the Republican Steering Committee to serve on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, as well as the House Committee on Natural Resources.

Both committees have jurisdiction over key areas that are vital to Oklahoma’s Second Congressional District, including funding for roads, bridges and ports, along with being responsible for issues of mineral resources on public lands, and all matters regarding Native Americans and the hundreds of federally recognized tribes.

“I’m honored that the Steering Committee had the confidence in me to select me for membership on these very important committees,” said Mullin. “Both committees are so important to the Second District, whether you’re talking about roads and bridges, or the ports we have, or our Indian tribes and natural resources. Serving on these committees will help me serve the people of my district, and that’s what I’m here for. I’m ready to get to work.”

Mullin has spent two weeks in Washington D.C. since his election, attending official House orientation events, as well as meeting with members of the Steering Committee to discuss potential committee selections.

“When I started thinking about what committees I wanted to serve on, of course, I wanted to be on the committees that mean the most to our district, and these two really fit the bill,” Mullin said. “The Transportation Committee of course is an obvious one for us because we have vital ports, and all of our roads and bridges are critical, so that one is very important. And Natural Resources is a major part of so many things in the Second District like working with the tribes, dealing with water issues, and access to mineral rights. These really are great committees for our district.

“I’m glad to be serving on these committees, but no matter what committees I’m on, my mission in Congress is the same: we need to get spending under control so we can balance the budget and get out of debt.”

Mullin won’t become an official member of either committee until he is sworn in to office in January. In the mean time, Mullin said he will work on getting up to speed on upcoming issues so he can hit the ground running.

“I came up here to work, and that’s what I’ll be doing as long as I’m here,” said Mullin.

Fact-checkers will be all over this one.

Now, they’re absolutely squaring off on oil and gas permitting. Romney pressed the president to say by how much he had cut permits. Romney seems to be chasing him on the stage over this.

Very confrontational. They’re not debating now, they’re arguing.

Part of my blueprint for an economy built to last is American energy. And that’s why we’re here today.

For decades, America has been talking about decreasing our dependence on foreign oil. Well, my Administration has actually done something about it.

Over the last three years, we negotiated the toughest new efficiency standards for cars and trucks in history. And we’ve opened millions of new acres for oil and gas exploration. Right now, American oil production is the highest it’s been in eight years. Eight years. Last year, we relied less on foreign oil than in any of the past 16 years. And today, I’m announcing that my administration will soon open up around 38 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico for exploration and development, which could result in a lot more production of domestic energy.

Here’s the thing, though. Even with all this oil production, we only have 2 percent of the world’s reserves. So we need an all-out, all-in, all-of-the-above strategy that develops every available source of American energy – a strategy that’s cleaner, cheaper, and full of new jobs.

A good place to start is with natural gas. We have a supply of natural gas that can last America nearly a hundred years. Developing it could power our cars, our homes, and our factories in a cleaner and cheaper way. And experts believe it could support more than 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade.

Now, I know some families are worried about the impact this could have on our environment and on the health of our communities. I share that concern. That’s why I’m requiring – for the first time ever – that all companies drilling for gas on public lands disclose the chemicals they use. America will develop this resource without putting the health and safety of our citizens at risk.

But we’ve got to keep at it. Think about what could happen if we do. Think about an America where more cars and trucks are running on domestic natural gas than on foreign oil. Think about an America where our companies are leading the world in developing natural gas technology and creating a generation of new energy jobs; where our natural gas resources are helping make our manufacturers more competitive for decades. We can do this.

Last April, we issued a challenge to shipping companies like this one. We said that if you upgrade your fleets to run on less oil or no oil at all, we’d help you succeed. We started out with five companies that accepted the challenge, and UPS was one of the first. Less than a year later, we’ve got fourteen companies on board, and together, they represent one million vehicles on the road.

But we should do more. And that’s why we’re here today.

First, let’s get more of these natural gas vehicles on the road. The federal fleet of cars is leading by example. We’ve got to help local governments upgrade their fleets, too. If more of these brown trucks are going green, more city buses should too.

Second, let’s offer new tax incentives to help companies buy more clean trucks like these.

Third, let’s make sure all these new trucks that are running on natural gas have places to refuel. We’re going to keep working with the private sector to develop up to five natural gas corridors along our highways. These are highways that have natural gas fueling stations between cities – just like the one the folks at UPS, South Coast Air, and Clean Energy Fuels are opening today between Los Angeles and Salt Lake City.

Finally, to keep America on the cutting edge of clean energy technology, I want my Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, to launch a new competition that encourages our country’s brightest scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs to discover new breakthroughs for natural gas vehicles.