Hope China doesn't get it...

The State Department has decided to "postpone" its decision on the Keystone XL Pipeline project until an impact assessment of other routes can be completed.  This probably won't happen until 2013, after the presidential election.

Some people have accused Obama of pandering to his base, which threatened immobilization during the 2012 campaign if he didn't concede to their anti-Keystone demands.  I think it's more than that - Keystone XL was opposed by both Democrats and Republicans questioned the safety of a massive oil pipeline crossing sensitive ecosystems and important sources of drinking water.

It's definitely a good idea to make sure the research is sound, as it's possible that there were some conflicting interests surrounding the first Environmental Impact Statement.  Boener is definitely nuts to suggest that "more than 20,000 new American jobs have just been sacrificed".  You can't really sacrifice something you don't have, can you?

Like I said the other day, the Athabasca Oil Sands are nasty, but they're going to be developed whether America buys the oil or not.  We better hope that Joe Oliver and his ilk aren't too trigger-happy with the contracts.  If the oil flows west to China instead of south to Texas and Oklahoma, well....