Platts.  Natural gas pipeline companies have spent $2.3 million on US political campaigns ahead of Tuesday’s federal elections, a modest $100,000 increase from the 2006 mid-terms, even as Congress considers tightening pipeline safety oversight and curbing carbon emissions. The industry gave $1.3 million, or about 57% of the total, to Republican candidates and $934,000, or 41% of the total, to Democrats, according to the latest filings tracked by the Center for Responsive Politics. The sector has favored Republicans in every election cycle since 1994.  (Comment.  The entire energy sector should not support candidates until donors are convinced that their alignment in organizing Congress and State houses will not lead to 1) greater regulation, 2) higher taxes, 3) more demonization of industry, 4) less access to natural resource lease acreage, and 5) more socialization of the Nation which ultimately leads to a socialized — or at least ‘controlled’ — energy sector, a-la-cap-and-tax, General Motors, medicine and finance.   -dh)

Calgary Herald by Deborah Yedlin.  According to David Goldwyn, the U.S. State Department’s Special Envoy for International Energy Affairs, the decision on Keystone involves consideration of a number of factors — including energy security as part of the "calculus" — and won’t hinge on one event.  "Canada is our No. 1 source of energy imports … It’s important for us to understand issues such as how the Canadian government will deal with greenhouse gas emissions, the impact of the tailings ponds, land use policy, the upstream impact and the efficiency of the process," said Goldwyn, who was in Alberta the past two days visiting with industry, regulators and touring the oilsands. "We also need to understand what the plans are for using regulatory policy to improve the efficiency of the (oilsands) process."  But that’s not to say Keystone is a slam dunk, either, despite remarks made last week by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  (Comment: This issue is important to Alaska, not only because of TransCanada’s involvement, but because it gives Alaskans greater understanding of the Obama Administration’s passive-aggressive attitude toward energy.  Throw a bone to Canada and say its energy is important to the U.S. but — by they way — Canada needs to meet the Obama environmental activist strategy as if it were the 51st state.  Do we see the U.S. putting environmental demands on our other sources of imports: Russia, Iran, Venezuela, et.al.?  No, this statement — like other Obama strategies — is pretext for demanding political influence on Canadian business decisions on the way toward satisfying demands of Obama’s socialist-environmental constituencies.  -dh)

News Blaze.  Yukon First Nations will be more prepared to participate and benefit from opportunities in the resource development sector.  The Honourable John Duncan, Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor), announced the investment of just under $210,000 through Canada’s Economic Action Plan.