“Energy independence trumps GHG concerns. The environmental community will scream. Will Jackson resign over this one? In some places, that might help Obama's reelection efforts.”
“I don't think it will make a big difference one way or the other, but it will help at the margin—like his decision to delay any new ozone standard--by showing that he is willing to stand up to environmental activists when jobs are at stake.”
“The people who will be upset about this decision won't have a better alternative in 2012.”
Hurt
“He will receive few benefits from voters almost a year after the decision while deeply disappointing many of his supporters.”
“It will further rub his environmental base the wrong way, and despite its benefits to the oil and gas industry, they will do everything in their power to defeat him—with even more vigor. It's the new normal.”
“It will hurt him with environmentalists (whose votes he could and should earn) and won't help him with the 'drill baby, drill' advocates (whose votes he will never earn). Oil exploration is among the most polarizing energy issues and the notion of tar sands development in Canada, a pipeline through U.S. property and protected habitats and water tables, to reach refineries in Texas in order to be processed and shipped overseas sets environmentalists' hair on fire. Hard pressed to see how environmentalists could vote for many in current Republican line-up but they could stay home and keep their checkbooks closed.”
“It will hurt only because it will really set the enviro Community off, while getting little or no credit from the business side.”
“The only constituency that this helps Obama with is Canadians and they don't vote in our elections. Coming on top of the Ozone regs delay, approving Keystone only further discourages the President's core voters.”
Neither
“I believe the Keystone pipeline project will neither help nor hurt the President's re-election efforts, although it will be another reason for the base to lose any enthusiasm they still have.”
National Journal’s Energy and Environment Insiders Poll is a periodic survey of energy policy experts. They include:
Jeff Anderson, Paul Bailey, Kenneth Berlin, Denise Bode, Kevin Book, David Brown, Neil Brown, Stephen Brown, Kateri Callahan, McKie Campbell, Guy Caruso, Paul Cicio, Douglas Clapp, Eileen Claussen, Steve Cochran, Phyllis Cuttino, Kyle Danish, Lee Dehihns, Robbie Diamond, Bob Dinneen, Sean Donahue, Jeff Duncan, John Felmy, Mike Ference, David Foster, Josh Freed, Don Furman, Paul Gilman, Richard Glick, Kate Gordon, Chuck Gray, Jason Grumet, Christopher Guith, Lewis Hay, Jeff Holmstead, David Holt, Skip Horvath, Bob Irvin, Bill Johnson, Gene Karpinski, Joseph T. Kelliher, Brian Kennedy, Kevin Knobloch, David Kreutzer, Fred Krupp, Tom Kuhn, Con Lass, Mindy Lubber, Frank Maisano, Drew Maloney, Roger Martella, John McArther, Mike McKenna, Bill McKibben, David Miller, Kristina Moore, Richard Myers, Aric Newhouse, Frank O'Donnell, Mike Olson, T. Boone Pickens, Thomas Pyle, Hal Quinn, Rhone Resch, Barry Russell, Joseph Schultz, Bob Simon, Scott Sklar, Bill Snape, Jeff Sterba, Christine Tezak, Susan Tierney, Andrew Wheeler, Brian Wolff, Franz Wuerfmannsdobler, and Todd Young.
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