Susan Rice’s Sec. Of State Nod Is Troubling For Non-Benghazi Reasons

Susan Rice is, for better or worse, the focal point of the Obama Administration’s Benghazi situation at the moment. Though we can kick the reasons why she is or isn’t culpable for some sort of scandal back and forth all day long, conservatives are ill over her likelihood to inherit the position of Secretary of State from Hillary Clinton when she exits her seat. The kicker is, maybe conservatives should be ill, just not for Benghazi-related reasons.

Liberal blog Mother Jones reports that Ambassador Rice holds millions of dollars in investments in Canadian oil companies and banks with stakes in the $7 billion Keystone XL Pipeline, citing a report from the environmental advocacy group Natural Resources Defense Council.

This means that as head of the State Department, Rice would have ultimate authority in determining the fate of the pipeline, creating something of a conflict of interest.

This report shows Rice’s significant holdings in more than a dozen Canadian oil companies and banks that would stand to benefit greatly from the controversial oil pipeline. Nearly a third of Rice’s personal net worth is invested in Canadian oil producers, pipeline operators, and other energy companies.

“It’s really amazing that they’re considering someone for Secretary of State who has millions invested in these companies,” said Bill McKibben, an activist and protestor of the Keystone XL project.

The pipeline was delayed in 2011 when the State Department demanded a review of alternative routes to protect ecologically sensitive regions in Nebraska. The fate of the Keystone XL pipeline will be decided by the new Secretary of State in 2013. If it’s Susan Rice, conservatives will have an entirely new reason to call foul, even if it gets them what they want in the end: More domestic drilling.