October, 19 2020, 12:00am EDT
Federal Judge Denies KXL Injunction Request
Indigenous Environmental Network vows to keep fighting.
Bemidji, MN
Last week, a federal district judge issued a decision denying a long-pending motion for preliminary injunction against construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. This injunction request is a part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by the Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) that challenges the legality of the Presidential Permit that granted permission for the KXL pipeline to cross the Canada/US border. Although the request for an injunction and temporary restraining order were denied, Judge Morris reserved ruling on IEN's long-pending motion for summary judgment. This motion is based on the original claims against the 2019 Presidential Permit. The Judge has asked for further briefing to assist him in rendering that ruling.
The following is a statement by IEN KXL Community Frontline Organizer, Joye Braun, Cheyenne River Sioux Citizen:
"While we are disappointed that Judge Morris didn't grant a construction injunction on KXL we are looking at all our options. The permitting for the water crossings is still under review and we must remember that despite the states being in the pocket of TC Energy, the tribes and landowners along the route stand resolute in their opposition against this evil black snake that threatens increased climate change, tramples on treaty rights, threatens the health and safety of Indigenous women, threatens endangered species and the water we need for survival. We will stop this zombie pipeline."
Established in 1990 within the United States, IEN was formed by grassroots Indigenous peoples and individuals to address environmental and economic justice issues (EJ). IEN's activities include building the capacity of Indigenous communities and tribal governments to develop mechanisms to protect our sacred sites, land, water, air, natural resources, health of both our people and all living things, and to build economically sustainable communities.
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"So if you're wondering if Donald Trump is trying to kill your kids, yes, yes he is," said one critic.
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Public health advocates, federal lawmakers, and other critics responded with alarm to The New York Timesreporting on Friday that an attorney helping Robert F. Kennedy Jr. select officials for the next Trump administration tried to get the U.S. regulators to revoke approval of the polio vaccine in 2022.
"The United States has been a leader in the global fight to eradicate polio, which is poised to become only the second disease in history to be eliminated from the face of the earth after smallpox," said Liza Barrie, Public Citizen's campaign director for global vaccines access. "Undermining polio vaccination efforts now risks reversing decades of progress and unraveling one of the greatest public health achievements of all time."
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According to the newspaper:
Mr. Siri is also representing ICAN in petitioning the FDA to "pause distribution" of 13 other vaccines, including combination products that cover tetanus, diphtheria, polio, and hepatitis A, until their makers disclose details about aluminum, an ingredient researchers have associated with a small increase in asthma cases.
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Ayman Chit, head of vaccines for North America at Sanofi, told the newspaper that development of the vaccine began in 1977, over 280 million people worldwide have received it, and there have been more than 300 studies, some with up to six months of follow-up.
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Both comments generated concern—like the Friday reporting in the Times, which University of Alabama law professor and MSNBC columnist Joyce White Vance called "absolutely terrifying."
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Ryan Cooper, managing editor at The American Prospect, warned that "they want your kids dead."
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Multiple critics altered Trump's campaign slogan to "Make Polio Great Again."
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) responded with a video on social media:
Without naming anyone, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), a polio survivor, put out a lengthy statement on Friday.
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