Letter to Secretary Highlights Benefits of Project for Energy, National Security
HOUSTON, TX – Today, Consumer Energy Alliance transmitted a letter to the newly confirmed Secretary of State John Kerry in which the organization underscores the importance of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline for economic and energy security. While the letter notes that the pending presidential permit for the pipeline is “among the most politically divisive issues that the Department of State will face this year,” the letter also outlines a series of arguments in support of the project. Of note, CEA believes the Keystone XL pipeline is part of a movement toward North American energy self-sufficiency, a transition which will strengthen the secretary’s position as a diplomat representing U.S. interests abroad.
Consumer Energy Alliance President David Holt writes:
“Keystone XL is part of a broader transition toward North American energy self-sufficiency – a revolution that will have profound effects on U.S. foreign relations and global geopolitics. Increased supplies of North American oil and natural gas coupled with greater adoption of energy efficiency, conservation, and renewable energy can eliminate the need for foreign imports within this decade.
“For the first time in decades, the United States has an opportunity to advance our foreign policy without being beholden to foreign oil powers. North American energy self-sufficiency will allow the United States greater leverage and transparency as we seek to further our interests abroad, such as containing nuclear proliferation and expanding human rights to oppressed populations.”
Commenting on the letter, CEA Executive Vice President Michael Whatley issued the following statement:
“As the State Department undergoes this change in leadership, CEA and our members wanted to express our strong support for the Keystone XL pipeline and to remind Secretary Kerry of the broad support this project has received from hundreds of thousands of consumers across the country.
“By approving Keystone XL, Secretary Kerry has a unique opportunity to further North American energy self-sufficiency and, by effect, to improve the ability of the United States to advance our foreign policy. While the United States must continue to support the free movement of energy supplies globally, U.S. diplomats will no longer be forced to bend to the demands of foreign oil regimes like Venezuela and Saudi Arabia that sometimes operate against the best interest of the United States and its allies. Keystone XL and other projects that decrease our dependence on overseas oil will allow us to focus on more important objectives abroad.”
