Second Major Delay Against Keystone XL

The Obama administration announced a major delay in its decision on the Keystone XL pipeline. The State Department will take more time to consider the impacts of the as-yet-undecided route through Nebraska, and other concerns raised in the more than 2.5 million public comments submitted earlier this year. This will likely push a final decision until after the 2014 midterm elections or later.


This is huge. When CREDO started going big into the Keystone XL fight in 2011, approval was considered a done deal by all of the big DC prognosticators. At every turn we've been able to block approval, and by delaying the process yet again, we've won another battle in our fight to stop this pipeline.

On the other hand, this development is disappointing. With our momentum building, the calls of climate scientists getting increasingly dire, and the facts clearly weighing against Keystone XL, we were hoping for a clear rejection -- and soon. No matter what the final proposed route through Nebraska, this project will be a massive disaster for the climate. But clearly President Obama and Secretary Kerry are not yet ready to show the courage and leadership required to take meaningful action to stop climate change.

But where President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry have failed, the people have prevailed. The fierce opposition from grassroots activists has earned yet another major defeat for TransCanada, tar sands developers like the Koch brothers, and oil-soaked politicians who are seeking to profit from this appallingly dangerous project. That is worth celebrating.

No doubt, the nearly 100,000 people who have pledged to risk arrest to stop Keystone XL played a key role in holding the administration's feet to the fire to consider the full impacts of this project. And we're grateful to everyone who has made that commitment and played such a big role in stopping approval of this dirty tar sands pipeline so far.

This decision in no way diminishes our commitment to making sure the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline is never built - and keeping tar sands in the ground.

And we will keep relentlessly fighting tar sands and other dangerous fossil fuel expansions, while pushing for the strongest possible federal action to cut climate pollution.

We don't buy the analysis being pushed by many in the media that, by delaying the decision until after the election, the president has avoided having to choose between angering environmentalists and hurting the election prospects of pro-oil Democrats in close re-election contests.

Rejecting Keystone XL would have been one of the best possible ways to fire up the Democratic base heading into the important midterm elections. And no matter what the president ultimately decides on Keystone XL, it's not going to determine the outcome of close elections for politicians like Mary Landrieu in Louisiana who put the interests of Big Oil before the people she represents.

The president has passed on an opportunity to demonstrate his commitment to action on climate. But you haven't. Thank you for everything you have done to block approval of this pipeline. Together we will continue to push for rejection of Keystone XL.

The fight isn't over. But this is time to celebrate and recharge for the battles ahead.

Thanks for all you do.

Elijah Zarlin, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets

ATLANTA GROUP