WASHINGTON– President Donald Trump signed executive actions to advance approval of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines, he announced from the White House on Tuesday.

The decision to advance the pipelines would cast aside efforts by President Barack Obama’s administration to block construction of the two pipelines, while making good on one of Trump’s campaign promises.

Trump during his campaign said he would streamline the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, which was stalled for years in the Obama administration until Obama denied approval for the pipeline’s construction altogether in November 2015.

And Trump said for the first time in December that he supported construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, which stalled last year amid protests opposing its construction on Native American lands. The Obama administration denied the company a permit it needed to complete the pipeline late last year.

Trump said during the campaign that he not only wanted to quickly approve the Keystone XL pipeline, which would shuttle oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, but also wanted to push for a deal that would grant US taxpayers a share of the profits. Trump said that the US would approve the pipeline while also seeking a “better deal.”

Trump’s approval of both pipelines are early signs of how his administration will take a drastically different approach to energy and environmental issues. Beyond approving the pipelines, Trump has also vowed to slash environmental protection regulations and has nominated several skeptics of the overwhelming scientific consensus on climate change to key Cabinet posts dealing with environmental issues.

By approving the Dakota Access pipeline, Trump is also likely to spark a new wave of protests over the issue.

More stories on the President Donald Trump here </s> Story highlights "It's a great day for jobs and energy independence," Trump said

The approval follows years of intense debate over the pipeline

Washington (CNN) President Donald Trump announced Friday that his administration has approved the Keystone XL pipeline, reversing the Obama administration's decision to block the controversial oil project.

Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump officially announced the approval shortly after the State Department issued TransCanada's permit, making good on one of his campaign promises. The approval greenlights the Canadian company to complete construction on the pipeline that will funnel crude oil from Canada to refineries on the Gulf Coast.

"It's a great day for jobs and energy independence," Trump said, calling the pipeline "incredible" and "the greatest technology known to man or woman."

Standing alongside his secretaries of energy and commerce, Trump vowed that the pipeline would be the "first of many" energy projects his administration will approve.

TransCanada CEO Russel Girling said he was "very relieved" to see the pipeline approved.

Read More </s> (FOX NEWS) WASHINGTON – The Trump administration has issued a presidential permit to pipeline builder TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer tweeted that President Donald Trump would discuss the pipeline later Friday morning.

The State Department says that it determined that building Keystone serves the U.S. national interest. That’s the opposite conclusion to the one the State Department reached during the Obama administration. </s> WASHINGTON (AP) – The Trump administration has issued a presidential permit to pipeline builder TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer tweeted that President Donald Trump would discuss the pipeline later Friday morning.

The State Department says that it determined that building Keystone serves the U.S. national interest. That’s the opposite conclusion to the one the State Department reached during the Obama administration.

The State Department says it considered foreign policy and energy security in making the determination.

The permit was signed by Tom Shannon, a career diplomat serving as undersecretary of state for political affairs. That’s because Secretary of State Rex Tillerson recused himself due to his previous work running Exxon Mobil.

Keystone will carry tar sands oil from Canada to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. </s> WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/AP) — President Donald Trump says “it’s a great day for American jobs” after his administration issued a permit to build the long-delayed Keystone XL pipeline.

The decision marks a reversal from the Obama administration and clears the way for the $8 billion project to be completed.

The president says the decision ushers in a “new era” of American energy policy and will reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil.

“Today, we prepare to do things right,” Trump said.

Trump signed an executive order advancing advancing the pipeline back in January. The decision caps a years-long fight between environmental groups and energy industry advocates over the pipeline’s fate.

It’s one of several steps the administration is expected to take in the coming weeks to prioritize economic development over environmental concerns. </s> Pipeline contractor TransCanada receives presidential permit to build the Keystone XL pipeline, state department says.

The US administration has issued a presidential permit to pipeline contractor TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer tweeted that President Donald Trump would discuss the pipeline later on Friday morning.

The State Department said that it determined that building Keystone serves the US national interest, opposing a conclusion the State Department reached during the Obama administration.

The State Department said it considered foreign policy and energy security in making the determination.

The permit was signed by Tom Shannon, a career diplomat serving as undersecretary of state for political affairs, because Secretary of State Rex Tillerson recused himself due to his previous work running Exxon Mobil.

Keystone will carry tar sands oil from Canada to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. </s> U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed executive actions to accelerate the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipeline projects and to decree that American steel should be used for pipelines built in the United States.

Trump also signed an action to expedite environmental review and approval of high-priority infrastructure projects that he hopes to get moving as part of his drive to rebuild U.S. airports, roads and bridges.

Trump told reporters that "we are going to renegotiate some of the terms" of the Keystone XL project. "And if they like we will see if we can get that pipeline built - a lot of jobs, 28,000 jobs, great construction jobs."

He said the Dakota pipeline would be "subject to terms and conditions negotiated by us."

Trump said his order on pipelines "will put a lot of steelworkers back to work."

"We are very insistent that if we are going to build pipelines in the United States, the pipes should be built in the United States," he said.

Former President Barack Obama stopped the proposed Keystone XL pipeline in late 2015, declaring it would have undercut U.S. efforts to clinch a global climate change deal that was a centerpiece of his environmental legacy. The pipeline would run from Canada to U.S. refineries in the Gulf Coast. The U.S. government needed to approve the pipeline because it crossed the border.

Separately, late last year, the Army Corps of Engineers declined to allow construction of the Dakota Access pipeline under Lake Oahe, saying alternative routes needed to be considered. The Standing Rock Sioux tribe and its supporters say the project threatens drinking water and Native American sites, though Energy Transfer Partners, the company that wants to build the pipeline, disputes that and says the pipeline will be safe.

The pipeline is to carry North Dakota oil through South Dakota and Iowa to a shipping point in Illinois.

The person with knowledge of Trump's decisions insisted on anonymity because that person was not authorized to confirm the moves ahead of a formal announcement.

Trump has moved swiftly this week to make good on some of his core campaign pledges he says are aimed at creating jobs and growing the economy. On Monday, he signed a memorandum withdrawing the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact, a proposed accord with 11 Pacific Rim countries and another of Obama's prized accomplishments.

"Great thing for the American worker what we just did," Trump said as he signed the order in the Oval Office.

Yet even as Trump moves to implement his agenda, he is still making false claims.

During a reception with lawmakers at the White House Monday evening, Trump claimed the reason he'd lost the popular vote to Democratic rival Hillary Clinton was that 3 million to 5 million immigrants living in the U.S. illegally had voted. That's according to a Democratic aide familiar with the exchange who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private meeting.

There is no evidence to support Trump's claim. He made a similar statement on Twitter in late November that he had won the Electoral College in a "landslide" and "won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally." Clinton won the popular vote by nearly 2.9 million votes but lost the electoral contest.

Trump's assertion appears to be part of a continuing pattern for him and his new administration in which falsehoods overshadow his outreach efforts.

On Tuesday, Trump summoned the heads of the big three American automakers, General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Fiat Chrysler, for a breakfast meeting at the White House. He pledged to scrap regulations and reduce taxes on corporations that keep jobs in the U.S., though he did not specify his plans for either.

His administration, he said, will "go down as one of the most friendly countries" for business.

Trump's actions signal a reset after a tumultuous weekend dominated by his and his spokesman's false statements about inauguration crowds and their vigorous complaints about media coverage of the celebrations. While Trump's advisers have long accepted his tendency to become fixated on seemingly insignificant issues, some privately concede that his focus on inauguration crowds was unhelpful on the opening weekend of his presidency.

In addition to his executive action on TPP, Trump signed memorandums freezing most federal government hiring — though he noted an exception for the military — and reinstating a ban on providing federal money to international groups that perform abortions or provide information on the option. The regulation, known as the "Mexico City Policy," has been a political volleyball, instituted by Republican administrations and rescinded by Democratic ones since 1984.

The actions were among the long list of steps candidate Trump pledged to take on his opening day as president. But other "Day One" promises were going unfulfilled, including plans to propose a constitutional amendment imposing term limits on members of Congress and terminating Obama's executive actions deferring deportations for some people living in the U.S. illegally. </s> U.S. President Donald Trump and TransCanada President Russ Girling were on hand in the Oval Office Friday to announce the Trump administration has signed off on the Keystone XL pipeline project. </s> Before the struggle over the Dakota Access pipeline came to the forefront of national news, there was the Keystone XL pipeline. Commissioned in 2010 by the TransCanada corporation, the seven-year-long debate over the pipeline’s future has been symbolic of the fight over the future of the United States’ energy policy in the face of diminishing fossil fuel supplies and climate change.

While former President Barack Obama won the approval of environmentalists in 2015 for his rejection of the pipeline, his successor Donald Trump has now put an end to the debate by officially issuing the necessary permits for the project’s completion. Moments ago, the U.S. State Department issued a presidential permit for the Keystone XL pipeline.

“This is a significant milestone for the Keystone XL project. We greatly appreciate President Trump’s administration for reviewing and approving this important initiative and we look forward to working with them as we continue to invest in and strengthen North America’s energy infrastructure.”

Trump’s approval of the pipeline should come as no surprise as he made his position on Keystone XL quite clear months ago when he signed an executive order advancing the pipeline’s approval. One of the ways in which he advanced the pipeline was by shortening the environmental review process, a move which drew consternation from environmental activists and concerned citizens who oppose the pipeline.

Trump, as well as the fossil fuel industry, have argued that the pipeline is essential to securing the nation’s energy independence as it will reduce the country’s dependence on foreign oil. However, Obama – when he rejected the pipeline – argued that this was not the case and that the pipeline would also do little to reduce domestic energy costs.

Environmentalists have consistently slammed Trump’s stance on the Keystone XL pipeline. Tom Steyer of NextGen Climate, told CNN that Trump has put “corporate interests ahead of American interests” by supporting and advancing the pipeline, adding that “The pipelines are all risk and no reward, allowing corporate polluters to transport oil through our country to be sold on the global market, while putting our air and water at serious risk.” Now that the pipeline has been officially confirmed, environmentalists are likely to voice their concerns even louder as Trump makes good on his promise to keep the United States on its long-standing and arguably misguided energy policy of fossil fuel dependency.

This article (The Keystone XL Pipeline Was Just Officially Approved) was originally published on Mint Press News and syndicated by The Event Chronicle. Found via Antimedia.
United States President Donald Trump approves the controversial Keystone XL pipeline.