Why do people seem to think that Keystone XL is a government project? It isn't; they just need the government to sign off on it.
Anyway, IMO this issue is highly overrated by both sides. The oil is going to be extracted and consumed regardless, and if it isn't transported by pipeline it will transported via rail, which is more dangerous and produces greater carbon emissions.
On the other hand, it's true that this would create few permanent jobs (though it's interesting to see this argument come from people who champion public works spending as a means of increasing employment). Other pipelines are
already being built to transport crude from Alberta, and Keystone XL may not even be viable anymore due to the plummeting price of oil. Another thing which sadly rarely gets discussed is the fact that landowners have basically had their property seized via eminent domain and given to TransCanada to build this thing. That combined with the facts that it's looking increasingly useless and was never going to be an economic boon to begin with push me towards opposing it.
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