Making the decision on whether to support the planned Keystone XL pipeline was too hard of a choice to include in Hillary Clinton’s book Hard Choices, according to illegally obtained emails released by WikiLeaks Tuesday.
The emails show John Podesta, the former secretary of state’s campaign chairman, advising her to cut a section of her book where she talked about the controversial pipeline.
Dan Schwerin, Clinton’s director of speechwriting, told Podesta in an April 2104 email that the book’s editor suggested cutting a passage on the pipeline because it seemed like she was waffling on the issue.
“Unless you feel some need to mention it, I’m not sure what the gain is. You say you’re waiting for the study before making a determination, but I question whether any study is capable of defining a clear course of action, and some readers might think that relying on a study is a stalling tactic,” Schwerin wrote.
“As background, she decided to write about Keystone because her daughter suggested that it would be a glaring omission and look like an even worse dodge if she left it out.”
In response, Podesta simply responded, “Cut.”
Clinton wavered on the pipeline until a September announcement when she expressed her opposition to it. She said the proposed pipeline, which would later be killed by President Obama, would hurt the country’s work on addressing climate change. Democratic rival Bernie Sanders railed against the project during his campaign.
She explained her long delay in announcing her opinion away as waiting for the Obama administration to make a decision on the pipeline.
