As we mentioned yesterday, elections of many kinds were held all over the country Tuesday.
Some elections, like the defeat of the anti-union measure in Ohio, the defeat of the voter suppression law in Maine, or the defeat of the 'personhood' amendment in Mississippi were fantastic examples of the power of the people, saying "Enough!" to the power of big money and special interests.
Other elections in the country – like many races in Virginia – were further pitiful examples of how money plays far too big a part in our political system.
While we always try to link to the best stories about any topic, when we combed through all the election stories out there, far too often, a large number of our media colleagues appeared to be pumping the election results they were assigned to focus on through a stereotypical filter of good versus bad.
With the Keystone pipeline controversy, a topic we've been focusing on a great deal lately, the appearance that dispute is headed to a stalemate is another example of lazy storytelling, one that major media organizations, including the L.A. Times, seem to have latched onto.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
It's been obvious that many of President Obama's political advisors have been getting more and more nervous as the deadline for the President to make a decision on the pipeline has moved ever closer. As we've pointed out previously, many politicians in both major political parties, including Gov. Heineman, would be fine with the Keystone pipeline being completed through Nebraska, if the route was moved away from the Ogallala Aquifer.
While there is still some minor disagreement, it's been determined and generally accepted that Nebraska's own legislature and governor have the legal authority to move the pipeline. Actions being considered in the special session of the legislature also look to follow that determination with action. Some of the other measures before the Nebraska Unicameral in the current special session also follow the same action that President Obama and the State Department are now pushing for on the pipeline, looking towards added safety measures.
The decision that faces the President on the Keystone pipeline isn't strictly a binary one, of either allowing the project to begin immediately, or of denying it definitively. The President, through the State Department, may also call for more proof that safety standards will be adhered to as part of the permitting process. He may also call for more conditions to be met by TransCanada.
Finally, the State Department is looking at the option of whether they can re-route the pipeline, regardless of what Nebraska's state government says or does.
If it seems like this decision is complicated, that's because it is.
We won't deny that there are factions of both labor and environmental groups that desperately wish this was a simple black and white issue for the President to decide.
As we've said many times over the years about many decisions President Obama and his predecessors have made, this is not a simple decision.
If it were, it never would have reached the President's desk.
