Kick the Can

Obama Delays Keystone Pipline Decision

Outraged pipeline backers call it a political tactic.

The Obama administration announced late Friday that it will delay a decision on the Keystone XL pipeline, a controversial project that would link Canada's oil sands to the Gulf of Mexico, and has produced sharp conflicts between environmental groups and labor activists who want the construction jobs. The move drew sharp criticism from supporters, including Sen. Mary Landrieu, a Louisiana Democrat and the chairman of the Senate energy committee, who called it "irresponsible" and "nothing short of an indefinite delay." A spokesman for Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper complained the "politics" were getting in the way of the project. Opponents, including some major Democratic financiers, emphasize that the pipeline will be terrible for the environment.