Clinton ducks on Keystone for second day

For the second day in a row, presidential candidate Hillary Clinton refused to say whether she supports the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline.

At a Tuesday event in New Hampshire, an attendee directly asked her about the project, but she said she would only weigh in if the application is still pending when she takes office in 2017.

{mosads}“This is President Obama’s decision. And I am not going to second guess him, because I was in a position to set this in motion, and I do not think that would be the right thing to do. So I want to wait and see what he and Secretary Kerry decide,” she said.

“If it’s undecided when I become president, I will answer your question.”

Clinton’s answer follows a similar dodge from Monday but goes even further.

At another event Monday, where she said her role as secretary of State, when she oversaw the review process for Keystone from 2009 to 2013, disqualifies her from commenting.

“I will refrain from commenting, because I had a leading role in getting that process started, and I think that we have to let it run its course,” she said Monday.

Clinton’s repeated refusal to state a position on Keystone has angered environmentalists, who want her to come out strongly against the project that has become a symbol of the fight between increasing or decreasing North American oil production and consumption.

Her Democratic opponents, such as Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, oppose Keystone and have used the issue to drive a wedge between themselves and Clinton.

Obama has been considering TransCanada Corp.’s application for the Canada-to-Texas pipeline for nearly seven years.

Most congressional Democrats have voted against the GOP’s repeated attempts to go above Obama’s head and approve the project, though some support it.