You're watching...
Bold Nebraska Executive Director Jane Kleeb argues the Keystone Pipeline is not a step towards US. Energy independence.
Also in this playlist...
Auto-advance: ON
Auto-advance
This transcript is automatically generated
-- -- Texas judge just ruled in favor of trans Canada citing eminent domain to seize property on the keystone XL pipeline -- to -- construction on the southern -- begins.
Landowners are fighting back in with me now is activist Jane -- from bold Nebraska.
Jane thanks for joining us do you see you why -- judge and supported this pipeline believe that it is for the greater good and this could potentially.
Reduce our dependency on foreign oil.
No and I guess Mitt Romney actually needs a lesson in geography it's not to Sarah Palin.
I -- last time I checked Canada's not part of the United States and so that's foreign oil.
And to this pipeline is actually -- coming through America it's not coming to America.
So this really is actually going rate to refinery that's actually half owned by Saudi Arabia -- T about.
And it's essentially marketed for the export market so this has nothing to do.
With energy independence is actually has nothing to do with North Dakota and Montana oil we should be building pipelines to make sure that that oil gets to the market.
We should not be providing a pathway that's risking our land wider property rights for Canadians and private companies well I.
I I think for one with the start out by saying that right now Canada's our number one source of oil in this country.
But we do get from a number Middle Eastern countries of the idea would be to cut down our dependency there.
-- hard to believe that you don't under at least understand where the judge and his supporters of this pipeline are coming from.
I understand -- the judge is coming from because I understand that.
Essentially it was a kind of lopsided case to begin -- But trans Canada did actually not I was in the hearing room inside listen to both sides TransCanada did not prove that -- -- common carrier and they've yet to prove that.
And I think that this is as -- Supreme Court case and the making.
But essentially saying that a form corporation can take American man for their private -- -- now we're saying that eminent domain can be for private gain.
That is fundamentally goes against everything that Americans believe about eminent domain we already don't like.
Eminent domain when the government has to take our land but -- talking about a foreign private company taking our land.
So today it's friendly Canada tomorrow could be China could be I -- It's essentially a really slippery slope that I don't think any of us in America when -- -- down so that project quite frankly insulted us too risky for land and water.
Well -- that's another discussion but let's talk about the common carrier for the oil companies.
Is there any -- Texas to actually -- companies who come -- say.
That they are common carriers before that companies actually given the legal right to that property.
You know I think that there are some ways and some legal.
Experts have been weighing in on this -- the dominant for wine.
In Nebraska has done a long -- on this I mean.
Company should essentially have two very clearly lay out.
How much -- is American I don't how much is from Texas for example their own state oil how -- is from North Dakota Montana.
TransCanada is not willing to do that in factor not even willing to tell us what's in the content of the pipeline.
So we know that it's tar sands but we don't know all the different chemicals that are makes -- -- sands.
And noted to make it a liquid spill in order to make it liquid enough to -- through their pipelines so the lots of open questions.
And TransCanada said that that they had used eminent domain only as quote an absolute last resort.
And an estimated nineteen out of 14152.
Land -- contract and Texas.
-- do you actually think that they did everything they could before resorting to -- you believe that.
Now in fact -- in fact I know that they didn't.
I sat across the table of planning of landowners we organized landowners and Nebraska and and obviously talked to landowners and all the other states in the pipeline -- It's -- chance candid and knocks on the door the first thing that they tell landowners is that they can take their land -- eminent domain if they're not gonna go through negotiations.
That is not what a good neighbor does it's not what a good business -- and trans Canada and quite frankly met -- an ever republic on -- supports this project.
Should be ashamed -- wait a second it is hypocritical to say that your against the -- case.
But not against a foreign company taking private American land.
There's something fundamentally wrong about that that Republicans have to answer well we've certainly giving your your shot Mitt Romney gave us his angle today.
By the way they started digging enjoy -- Crawford's land yet.
They haven't and when they do I think -- see a lot of us there -- their bulldozers making sure they know.
That we do not support this project we certainly gave your side of the story Jane -- thanks for joining us.
Banks.
