The Senate voted down an amendment that would have given immediate approval to the Keystone XL export pipeline. Jane Kleeb, our Executive Director, made the following statement:

“Today’s vote is an official record of who sides with Nebraskans, our land and water and who sides with TransCanada and their Big Oil allies.

“We specifically want to thank Senator Nelson for voting with Nebraskans and President Obama for standing with our families. On the flip side, we’re not surprised that after co-sponsoring this legislation, Senator Johanns voted for Big Oil and against Nebraska families.

“TransCanada cares about one thing–getting their tarsands to a refinery on the Gulf Coast so they can ship it to the highest bidder. Senator Hoeven, the ND senator who introduced the amendment today, stood on the floor saying the Keystone XL pipeline would reduce our reliance on the Middle East. It is outrageous that he would make such a statement knowing the Keystone XL tarsands would have been headed straight to an export refinery that is not only owned by Saudi Arabia but also gets subsidized with millions of American taxpayers’ dollars.

“Under TransCanada’s plan, Nebraska assumes all the risks to our land and water, while TransCanada and the Saudi-owned refinery get all the profits. And all along the pipeline route, individual property rights are being violated.

“Nebraskans know this is certainly not the last we’ll hear from TransCanada. We’ve fought their export pipeline for two years and know the ‘Paid for by Big Oil’ politicians have a habit of doing whatever Big Oil demands rather than investing in jobs for a clean energy future.

“The good news is, our coalition is only getting bigger, and each defeat of the pipeline only strengthens our resolve to see this fight through.”