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Republican Governor of Nebraska Dave Heineman yesterday spoke out against the proposed 1,700 mile Keystone XL pipeline. In a letter to President Obama Heineman made the case that the pipeline would threaten a vital Nebraska aquifer, and the state’s economy. This is a high-profile boost for the droves of protestors who have spent thirteen days staging sit-ins against the pipeline in front of the White House, getting only sporadic media attention. Over 700 people have been arrested since August 20th for participating in the non-violent direct action, the culmination of months of organizing against TransCanada’s tar sands pipeline. So far, the President’s reaction to the clamor on his front lawn has been silence. In the last week and half Obama has issued statements on Hurricane Irene, on the election of new Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, on the Muslim holiday of Eid-ul-Fitr, and on events in Mexico. On the thousands of Americans demanding a stop to the pipeline project, he has said nothing. Likewise, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, whose State Department is tasked with approving the project’s permit, has not even publicly acknowledged the nearly two week action in Washington DC. During an August 26th press conference a spokesperson on the Department’s anticipated Final Environmental Impact Statement said the report’s summary findings state, “[t]here would be no significant impacts to most resources along the proposed pipeline corridor.” Of the many that would disagree with this assessment is NASA climate scientist James Hansen, who joined the protests and was arrested on Monday. Last week Hansen called on the President to show he is not a “hopeless addict” to oil and said approving the pipeline would be “game over” for the health of the planet. The protests have also drawn folks better known for their activism in other areas, including Army Veteran and LBGT activist Dan Choi, and Just Foreign Policy’s Robert Naiman. The last day of action is this Saturday, September 3rd.

GUEST: Brant Olson, Tar Sands Campaign Director at the Rainforest Action Network. He was arrested at the White House yesterday.

Find out more at www.tarsandsaction.org, www.dirtyoilsands.org, and www.ran.org/tarsands