presidential authority to approve trans-border facilities dates back centuries. In the late 1800s, President Ulysses S. Grant issued the first presidential permit for cross-border communications, permitting telegraph cables to be constructed between the United States and Canada. The Presidential permitting authority with respect to oil pipelines is derived from
Executive Order 11423. This Executive Order, which was signed by President Lyndon Johnson in 1968, explicitly delegated to the executive branch the permitting authority for “pipelines, conveyor belts, and similar facilities for the exportation or importation of petroleum, petroleum products, coal, or other fuels to or from a foreign country.” President Johnson’s order was expounded upon in 2004, when Republican President George W. Bush issued
Executive Order 13337 clarifying the procedure for the issuance of presidential permits.