GOVERNOR GIANFORTE TO BIDEN: “CUT THROUGH THE MALARKEY AND RECONSIDER KEYSTONE XL DECISION”
Thousands of jobs were stripped away with the inking of orders from the White House. Construction was halted on the Keystone XL pipeline.
The Governor of Montana was enraged:
“A symbolic gesture for your fledgling, hours-old administration, this decision has real and devastating consequences in Montana. With your executive order, gone are the thousands of good-paying American jobs, hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue to support our local communities and schools, the opportunity to advance America’s green energy infrastructure, and America’s energy security,” according to the official state website.
“Your campaign slogan, “Build Back Better,” would seem to apply to critical infrastructure projects such as Keystone XL pipeline. With its construction terminated, the oil will still reach markets in the U.S. and around the globe. Without a pipeline, though, it will be transported more slowly by trucks and other means, endangering the environment, delaying delivery and making it more expensive for consumers who are struggling to make ends meet amid the pandemic.”
The Governor had pleaded with Biden before he took office to no avail.
On its official website, Keystone XL reported its efforts regarding the climate.
“We are constantly looking for new and innovative ways to reduce global emissions, while providing communities with reliable energy. In our latest green initiative, we pledge that Keystone XL will operate at a net zero emissions level when it is placed in-service in 2023 — a first of its kind commitment in this industry.
We will also ensure enough new renewable electricity is available by 2030 to match Keystone XL’s power consumption — an initiative that will stimulate the investment of more than $1.7 billion in new renewable energy systems, create thousands of new green jobs and place TC Energy among the leading corporate purchasers of renewable power in North America.
In addition, we have pledged $10 million to a Green Energy Training fund through the construction of Keystone XL to help skilled laborers prepare for the energy jobs of the future,”
Biden had already preplanned the purge he was to take of actions taken in the last four years. In a few days time, he orders more Executive Orders than any President in history.
Sec. 6. Revoking the March 2019 Permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline. (a) On March 29, 2019, the President granted to TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, L.P. a Presidential permit (the “Permit”) to construct, connect, operate, and maintain pipeline facilities at the international border of the United States and Canada (the “Keystone XL pipeline”), subject to express conditions and potential revocation in the President’s sole discretion. The Permit is hereby revoked in accordance with Article 1(1) of the Permit.
(b) In 2015, following an exhaustive review, the Department of State and the President determined that approving the proposed Keystone XL pipeline would not serve the U.S. national interest. That analysis, in addition to concluding that the significance of the proposed pipeline for our energy security and economy is limited, stressed that the United States must prioritize the development of a clean energy economy, which will in turn create good jobs. The analysis further concluded that approval of the proposed pipeline would undermine U.S. climate leadership by undercutting the credibility and influence of the United States in urging other countries to take ambitious climate action.
(c) Climate change has had a growing effect on the U.S. economy, with climate-related costs increasing over the last 4 years. Extreme weather events and other climate-related effects have harmed the health, safety, and security of the American people and have increased the urgency for combatting climate change and accelerating the transition toward a clean energy economy. The world must be put on a sustainable climate pathway to protect Americans and the domestic economy from harmful climate impacts, and to create well-paying union jobs as part of the climate solution.
(d) The Keystone XL pipeline disserves the U.S. national interest. The United States and the world face a climate crisis. That crisis must be met with action on a scale and at a speed commensurate with the need to avoid setting the world on a dangerous, potentially catastrophic, climate trajectory. At home, we will combat the crisis with an ambitious plan to build back better, designed to both reduce harmful emissions and create good clean-energy jobs. Our domestic efforts must go hand in hand with U.S. diplomatic engagement. Because most greenhouse gas emissions originate beyond our borders, such engagement is more necessary and urgent than ever. The United States must be in a position to exercise vigorous climate leadership in order to achieve a significant increase in global climate action and put the world on a sustainable climate pathway. Leaving the Keystone XL pipeline permit in place would not be consistent with my Administration’s economic and climate imperatives.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
visit the White House website for the wholesale purge of policies taken in the last four years in what appears to be acts of sheer vindictiveness on the part of the Swamp.