Opponents of the Keystone XL oil pipeline on Friday sent President Obama more than 700 pens and encouraged him to use them to immediately reject the highly controversial and politically divisive project.
The pen campaign was organized by the group Bold Nebraska, a leading anti-Keystone organization. Each pen says “President Obama, this machine stops pipelines.”
The effort comes after news that the American Petroleum Institute (API) reportedly will launch new pro-Keystone advertising.
“Given the announcement by the American Petroleum Institute this morning to launch a new round of on advertising targeted at President Obama to approve the risky pipeline, Bold Nebraska continues to believe our small, grassroots actions like sending pens to the President will ’out-heart’ any ad campaign API plans now or in the future,” Bold Nebraska said in a statement.
The Keystone pipeline has been in limbo for the entirety of Mr. Obama’s time in office. State Department reviews have shown that the project will not significantly contribute to climate change but will create more than 40,000 jobs.
Still, the president — who must sign off on the pipeline because it would cross the U.S.-Canada boundary — has delayed a decision. The administration now says it will wait for the outcome of a high-stakes court case in Nebraska, where judges will decide whether Keystone’s route through the state is legal.
The pipeline also carries heavy political implications. Sen. Mary Landrieu, Louisiana Democrat who faces a run-off election against Republican Rep. Bill Cassidy on Saturday, is among the project’s biggest supporters and last month tried to push legislation approving Keystone through the Senate.
The bill garnered only 59 votes in favor, coming up one short of the 60 needed to proceed.
Meanwhile, Keystone advocates say the president has delayed a decision on the project for political reasons and are urging him to green-light it immediately.
“President Obama’s approach to Keystone XL has been to delay a decision until after the next election, then the next. With no more elections left, it’s time for the president to look beyond the next election cycle to the next generation and do what’s right for America’s future,” API President and CEO Jack Gerard said Friday.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.