There is an energy revolution under way in the United States. Booming oil and natural gas production is transforming our economic outlook, ushering newfound wealth to our rural areas and providing high-paying jobs for middle-class workers across the country.
![Work has begun on the Keystone XL Pipeline near Winona, Texas, but whether it will ever carry oil sands from central Canada to Gulf Coast refineries awaits a decision by President Obama. (Tyler [Texas] Morning Telegraph via Associated Press)](http://media.washtimes.com/media/image/2013/01/17/20130117-195944-pic-543473233_mugshot_four_by_three_s101x76.jpg?38f271e3d49cdfd5d0ef8cac5cad23b117d14f23)
Whether President Obama approves the Keystone XL pipeline or not hinges on one key question: Which is more important to him, creating jobs and promoting energy independence or fighting climate change?
A report from a presidential commission Tuesday did little to break the political deadlock over offshore drilling, prompting some observers to warn that the United States is headed toward another gas-price crunch this summer.
