http:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/newswire\/2014\/02\/27<\/p>\n
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
\nFebruary 27, 2014
\n8:05 AM<\/p>\n
CONTACT: 350.org<\/p>\n
WASHINGTON – February 27 – Pipeline opponents are pledging to turn up the heat on Secretary Kerry in reaction to the State Department\u2019s Inspector General report. The report confirms that the State Department knowingly hired a tar sands industry contractor to assess the Keystone XL pipeline’s environmental impact, but deems such dirty dealings business as usual.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe real scandal in Washington is how much is legal,\u201d said 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben. \u201cThis process has stunk start to finish. It\u2019s good that its now in the hands of the Secretary Kerry and President Obama so there\u2019s at least an outside chance of a decision not based on cronyism.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFar from exonerating the State Department of wrongdoing, the Inspector General report simply concludes that such dirty dealings are business as usual,\u201d said 350.org Policy Director Jason Kowalski. \u201cWhile allowing a member of the American Petroleum Institute to review a tar sands oil pipeline may technically be legal, it\u2019s by no means responsible. Secretary Kerry and President Obama can let their climate legacies be tarred by this dirty process or they can do the right thing and reject the Keystone XL pipeline once and for all.\u201d<\/p>\n
This Sunday, nearly 1,000 young people will rally outside of Secretary Kerry\u2019s house in Washington with a banner that reads \u201cSecretary Kerry: Don\u2019t Tar Your Climate Legacy,\u201d before marching to the White House, where at least 300 youth are expected to risk arrest in an act of civil disobedience.<\/p>\n
Secretary Kerry had a long record as a climate champion as a Senator from Massachusetts and recently called climate disruption the world\u2019s most dangerous weapon of mass destruction. He has yet to express a position on the Keystone XL pipeline.<\/p>\n
More information about the XL Dissent weekend of action can be found below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
http:\/\/www.commondreams.org\/newswire\/2014\/02\/27 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 27, 2014 8:05 AM CONTACT: 350.org WASHINGTON – February 27 – Pipeline opponents are pledging to turn up the heat on Secretary Kerry in reaction to the State Department\u2019s Inspector General report. The report confirms that the State Department knowingly hired a tar sands industry contractor to assess the Keystone … Continue reading Common Dreams: 350.org Reaction to State Department Inspector General Report on KXL–This Sunday, nearly 1,000 youth will protest outside Secretary Kerry\u2019s house in Washington before risking arrest in a sit-in at the White House<\/span>