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Dirty Energy Money and the Keystone XL Votes

According to Oil Change International, those senators who voted for the failed Keystone XL amendment received 500% more money from oil interests than those who voted against it.

By the numbers:

- The 56 senators who voted for the Keystone XL amendment have received 500% more money from oil interests in the current Congress than those who voted against it.

-In total these senators have received $27.5 million from dirty energy interests since 1999, $2.3 million during the current Congress.

- The average senator that ...More

Insurance Companies See Climate Dangers

After 2011’s record year of damaging natural disasters, insurance companies are speaking out on the reality of climate change and the financial burdens of extreme weather events.

Last week, Sens. Shelton Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) held a press conference with representatives from major insurance companies to discuss the need to tackle climate change.

"Perhaps no industry better understands the impact of global warming than the insurance industry whose job it is to analyze risk,” said Senator Sanders.

Due to last ...More

Senate Fails Keystone XL

The U.S. Senate today failed to adopt an amendment to approve construction of TransCanada’s dirty Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.

The amendment as proposed by Senator John Hoeven (R-ND) would have fast-tracked construction of the pipeline after President Obama rejected the proposed pipeline in January.

The amendment would have required 60 votes to pass, but received only 56 votes in favor.

Read more on the amendment and its failure at CNN.

Senate to vote on Keystone XL

The Senate is currently debating the long-delayed transportation bill, with votes on amendments to come later today. In a deal struck yesterday, Senate leadership agreed to allow votes on 30 amendments, including approval of the construction of the toxic Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.

President Obama has urged Senators to vote against the irresponsible pipeline amendment.

The $109 billion transportation bill includes amendments to increase offshore drilling and weaken EPA protections from industrial boiler pollution, despite the dangers of ...More

Sierra Club, NRDC Release Ads for Carbon Rules

The Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council have released a television ad campaign supporting the EPA's Clean Air Act rules on industrial carbon pollution. The ad will run in 12 major media markets in Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.

Obama Encourages Alternative Vehicles

President Obama will be outlining a plan to encourage alternative-fuel vehicles later today in the electoral battleground state of North Carolina, according to the White House.

This third energy-focused address in three weeks reflects a serious approach to creating a cleaner, more efficient energy future in the U.S.

The dual-pronged plan is aimed at first manufacturing, and then encouraging use of electric vehicles and other alternative fuels. It involve $1 billion to “invest in the necessary infrastructure, remove the regulatory barriers, and create ...More

Big Oil Contributes $100k to Tipton

After taking tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Big Oil, Rep. Scott Tipton (Colo.) has voted repeatedly to keep giving oil companies billions in wasteful oil subsidies.

Watch Public Campaign's new television ad:

Higher Temperatures Fuel Tornado Season

This year’s freakishly warm winter may increase the number of tornados this season in the U.S., reported USA Today.

The Storm Prediction Center released “high” or “moderate” risk categories for as many as 34 million people last Friday, and the numbers are on an upward trend as climate change increases average temperatures.

As confirmed by meteorologist Jeff Masters of the Weather Underground, warmer winters and earlier springs will stretch tornado season longer and longer. "This year's ...More