Gore: Obama ‘signaled’ he will reject Keystone

Former Vice President Al Gore says President Obama has “signaled” that he will likely reject the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, but gave no mention of hard evidence.

In a Rolling Stone article, Gore argues the U.S. is at a turning point in the climate change debate, and that Obama’s newfound courage to act on the matter may hint at the direction in which he will rule on the oil-sands pipeline.

{mosads}”He has signaled that he is likely to reject the absurdly reckless Keystone XL-pipeline proposal for the transport of oil from carbon­intensive tar sands to be taken to market through the United States on its way to China, thus effectively limiting their exploitation,” Gore wrote.

But leading up to his mention of the $3.4 billion project, which will carry crude from Alberta oil sands to Gulf refineries, Gore list the ways in which the administration is doing something new.

Three years ago, Gore writes, he was not a fan of Obama’s “diffidence” toward what he considered the “climate crisis.”

That changed as recently as this summer, Gore continues.

“it is abundantly evident that he has taken hold of the challenge with determination and seriousness of purpose,” he writes. “He has empowered his Environmental Protection Agency to enforce limits on [carbon dioxide] emissions for both new and, as of this June, existing sources of [carbon dioxide].”

It’s a shift that many green groups say indicates how Obama will, or should, rule on the Keystone pipeline.

Republicans aren’t holding their breath for the president to approve the pipeline either, and many have said he intends to kill the project, leaving it up to Congress to bypass him.

On Tuesday, Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) said Keystone will be approved but not until April of 2015, and it will be by Congress. 

“I think there’s a very good chance that not too long after the first of the year, we’ll be at that 60 threshold,” Hoeven said.

On the larger climate change debate, Gore is confident in the current shift toward climate action, stating “it is now clear that we will ultimately prevail.”