Billionaire to raise pressure on Keystone

Billionaire to raise pressure on Keystone

November 30, 2013, 06:22 am

By Laura Barron-Lopez

http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/191615-billionaire-to-raise-pressure-on-keystone

Billionaire Tom Steyer plans to renew his fight against Keystone XL in Washington on Monday.

NextGen Climate Action, founded by Steyer, will host a summit where participants will argue the Keystone XL pipeline proposed by TransCanada Corp. cannot pass President Obama's climate test.

In June, Obama said he would not approve Keystone if it “significantly exacerbates” carbon emissions.

“It seems like an important question to ask then: Will Keystone XL pass or flunk," said Mike Casey, consultant for NextGen Climate Action.

Steyer is opposed to the pipeline project — which would carry oil from the tar sands in Alberta, Canada to refineries in the Gulf of Mexico — and wants to stay engaged in the issue, Casey said.

“Tom is a strong supporter of the president and thinks he can make an important contribution,” he added.

Lobbyists on behalf of the tar sands have said there are no signs that the pipeline would leave a carbon footprint, something Steyer disagrees with.

He will make the case that Keystone XL will “unlock” tar sands and increase the country's carbon footprint.

Since its launch in early 2013, Steyer's climate group has been a loud voice on the climate issue.

The group touts an online community of roughly 300,000.

Steyer wants to make sure climate change becomes a “dinner table” conversation for the nation’s families, Casey said.

In June, Steyer wrote an open letter to Obama that highlighted his opposition to Keystone, and his intention to ask supporters of Obama to pressure the president on the issue.

TransCanada Corporation

TransCanada Corporation is the proposed builder for the Keystone XL pipeline.

Note: Susan E. Rice is a stockholder in the TransCanada Corporation, the White House national security adviser for the Barack Obama administration, was the former U.S. ambassador to UN for the Barack Obama administration, a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), and the Center for American Progress.

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations, the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society, and was a supporter for the Center for American Progress.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank), the Center for American Progress, and the Climate Reality Project.

Thomas F. Steyer (Tom) is a director at the Center for American Progress, and a Billionaire that plans to renew his fight against Keystone XL.

Carol M. Browner is a senior fellow, director at the Center for American Progress, was the energy czar for the Barack Obama administration, and a director at the Climate Reality Project.

Albert A. Gore Jr. is the chairman for the Climate Reality Project.