Keystone standoff cash cow in D.C.
Lobbyists to NGOs all benefiting
WASHINGTON — The Keystone XL pipeline may be stalled, but it’s pumping a steady flow of cash into Washington — where inertia is a multibillion-dollar industry.
The pipeline debate has become a money-making machine for lobbyists, advertisers, NGOs and political fundraisers in the U.S. capital, where tens of millions of dollars are being spent on the issue.
The spending deluge will continue indefinitely, thanks to the two latest non-developments: the Obama administration has delayed a decision on the pipeline, and a congressional effort to speed up the process appears to have collapsed this week.
The Washington insider news outlet, Politico, described the ongoing phenomenon Thursday under the headline “Keystone Inc.” One activist likened it to an arms race, calling the standoff between the pro- and anti-pipeline sides the most expensive environmental battle he’d ever seen.
Lobbying is conducted a little different south of the border, one Alberta diplomat pointed out.
“There’s no question that the way Washington operates is that there’s a lot of expertise on how policy is built, and how points are made and how communication can be successful,” said David Manning, the province’s representative in Washington.
“There’s probably a much larger industry in the U.S. than in Canada, and certainly much more aggressive in Washington than anything Canadians are familiar with.”
The paper trail tells part of the story.
From a labyrinthine disclosure system, some figures emerge to paint a financial portrait of how the issue is being slugged out on various fronts — lobbying, advertising, political donations and grassroots activism. ■ Lobbying: It’s a $6.7-billion industry in Washington, according to an analysis by the pro-transparency group the Sunlight Foundation. There are more than 12,000 registered lobbyists in D.C., although other analysts say the actual number is likely much higher.
TransCanada Corp., has had 10 lobbyists registered at the House of Representatives since 2009 and, in its disclosures for 2013, reported spending more than $260,000 lobbying both houses of Congress and federal agencies. Its lobbying activities have been pegged by the Open Secrets website at more than $1 million during the current election cycle.
■ Political donations: Open Secrets calculates that the oil- and- gas industry made $73.4 million in donations in the 2012 U.S. election cycle, with 90 per cent of it going to Republicans.
Anti-Keystone billionaire Tom Steyer promises to fight back by spending up to $100 million on the 2014 congressional races, essentially to help Democrats.
■ Advertising: Several Washington subway stations are blanketed with pro-Keystone XL ads, paid for by the government of Canada. Ottawa budgeted $16.5 million for advertising in 2013-14 to highlight what it calls responsible resource development. There are parallel ad campaigns by the industry and its opponents. A Steyer-funded group paid for one ad that aired during President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address, telling viewers the pipeline was a “sucker’s deal” for America
■ NGOs: The oil industry and a pipeline-workers union have created pro-KXL groups, like Nebraskans for Jobs and Energy Independence. Another group, Oilsands Fact Check, had a spokesman at a recent Washington protest to rebut points raised by antipipeline demonstrators.