Public hearings across the country on the Keystone XL pipeline are generating a robust conversation on the merits of the $7 billion project that would deliver Canadian oil sands crude to U.S. refiners. Which is as it should be.

Forums in Texas, Nebraska, Kansas and Montana have drawn spirited crowds and hundreds of speakers. Others are scheduled in Oklahoma and Washington, D.C. The State Department, which has been reviewing the project's application for three years, is expected to make a decision before the end of the year.

"Americans need the oil, and the oil can come from a friendly and reliable source, the Keystone XL and from Canada," said Tom Nesbitt, one of about 200 speakers at Lincoln, Neb., hearing. Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback spoke in Topeka: "Kansas is unique among the states alon... more »

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert has signed a law that would allow his state to file eminent domain proceedings against the federal government.

The goal: to gain control of state lands where energy development cannot occur because they are surrounded by protected federal lands.

Since the U.S. Constitution prohibits condemning federal lands, it's unlikely that Gov. Herbert will prevail in court, but his action is sending a message to Washington where energy-rich lands have been put off-limits by the federal government.

"When the donkey doesn't move," the governor said at a news conference, "you need to hit him across the head with a two-by-four just to get their attention." (The Wall Street Journal)

Energy development can generate well-paying jobs and provide economic opportunity. Pennsylvania, for... more »

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today announced the imposition of new regulatory hurdles that could slow or prohibit drilling for oil and natural gas on energy-rich federal lands.

In what has become increasingly familiar double-talk from this administration, Sec. Salazar spoke of the importance of domestic oil and natural gas, while making it more difficult to produce this oil and gas, put more Americans back to work and help restore our nation's economy.

Under the guise of offering certainty for investors, Sec. Salazar has taken steps to further delay and limit American energy resources for all Americans.

Since Salazar has taken his position, revenues from federal onshore oil and gas leasing in the five states that make up the Inter-Mountain West (Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah and Wy... more »