Keystone Oil Pipeline: Obama to Reject Controversial Proposal

The Keystone oil pipeline may be dead in the water, as the Obama administration appears poised to reject the controversial proposal, according to reports.

Deputy Secretary of State William J. Burns is expected to make the announcement this afternoon, according to the Washington Post.

Sources told the Post that President Barack Obama will reject TransCanada's application for a permit to build a gigantic oil pipeline connecting Canada and the U.S.

But the administration will allow the company to reapply if it can reroute the planned line through Nebraska's Sandhills, the paper reported. The announcement is coming at this time because the U.S. Congress has set a deadline of Feb. 21 for action on Keystone, the Post reported.

The move can be seen through a political lens, as it will likely engender goodwill with his far-left base voters, many of whom have been disenfranchised with the president because of his environmental record.