Friday, January 31, 2014

Keystone XL pipeline passes Obama's climate criteria

New York Times:
The State Department released a report on Friday that could pave the way toward President Obama’s approval of the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

... In a major speech on the environment last summer, Mr. Obama said that he would approve the pipeline only if it would not “significantly exacerbate” the problem of carbon pollution. He said the pipeline’s net effects on the climate would be “absolutely critical” to his decision.

... The conclusions of the report appear to indicate that the project has passed Mr. Obama’s climate criteria, an outcome expected to outrage environmentalists,... 

... The report released on Friday, however, is far from the final decision on the project. The State Department must next determine whether the pipeline is in the national interest. ...
Related: Peter Foster -The real barrier to Keystone XL approval lies with the White House

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

He needs to approve it ASAP. 2/3 of Americans support Keystone so he should listen to the majority of Americans not his left wing supporters. Most those opposed to it live in solid blue congressional districts and states anyways, so it's the swing seats and districts where people support it that matters. That being said I think it's only a matter of when, not if it gets approved. Even if Obama doesn't approve it, the next administration probably will.

JR said...

Agreed, but Obama won't decide until after the 2014 mid-term election. He and the Dems will need every vote possible, including the radical eco-left, to avoid losing the Senate.