In Her Own Words: Why Hillary Clinton Opposes Keystone XL
Yesterday, as Pope Francis was touching down on U.S. tarmac for the
first time, Hillary Clinton made clear a position she had withheld while
waiting for the administration to make a move. Today she explains her
stance on the Keystone XL pipeline.
When
I was secretary of state, the department began reviewing an application
to build a pipeline that would bring Canadian oil sands crude across
the border, run more than a thousand miles through the American
heartland, and terminate in Nebraska — Keystone XL.
As
the secretary who initiated the review, I refrained from commenting on
the pipeline after I left the federal government. I didn’t want to get
ahead of President Obama while the process was still underway — because
the decision was and is his to make.
Since
the application was filed, the effects of climate change have grown
more acute. More than 8 million acres have burned in the United States
so far this wildfire season. California is in the fourth year of a
historic drought scientists say has been made worse by climate change.
More severe storms and extreme heat waves have wreaked havoc around the
world.
I have come to feel I can’t stay
silent on an issue that matters so much to so many. Though I wanted to
give the president space to make a decision, the process has taken far
longer than I expected. I want the American people to know where I
stand. That’s why I am making it clear:
I am opposed to the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline.
