By John Solomon
How the government's punishing of the exposure of official wrongdoing can linger for years
![Work has begun on the Keystone XL Pipeline near Winona, Texas, but whether it will ever carry oil sands from central Canada to Gulf Coast refineries awaits a decision by President Obama. (Tyler [Texas] Morning Telegraph via Associated Press)](http://media.washtimes.com/media/image/2013/01/17/20130117-195944-pic-543473233_mugshot_four_by_three_s101x76.jpg?38f271e3d49cdfd5d0ef8cac5cad23b117d14f23)
Whether President Obama approves the Keystone XL pipeline or not hinges on one key question: Which is more important to him, creating jobs and promoting energy independence or fighting climate change?
Hassan al-Kubaisi considers it a gift from above that drivers in oil- and gas-rich Qatar only have to pay $1 per gallon at the pump.

Hassan al-Kubaisi considers it a gift from above that drivers in oil- and gas-rich Qatar only have to pay $1 per gallon at the pump.

TransCanada's proposed $7.6 billion Keystone XL pipeline, a massive project that would transport Canadian oil to Texas refineries on the Gulf Coast, has been pitched as a way to lower domestic gas prices. But a coalition of environmental groups on Tuesday produced a new study claiming the pipeline would have the opposite effect.