By Mary Sweeters

President-Elect Donald Trump formally announced Thursday his support for the completion of the Dakota Access Pipeline. His transition team noted that his support for the pipeline "had nothing to do with his personal investments and everything to do with promoting policies that benefit all Americans."

Trump's May 2016 financial disclosure revealed significant stock holdings in Energy Transfer Partners, Exxon and Phillips 66, which owns 25 percent of the pipeline project. Kelcy Warren, the CEO of Energy Transfer Partners, donated hundreds of thousands to Trump, Trump Victory Fund and the Republican National Committee this year.





In supporting the Dakota Access Pipeline, Trump has shown us the crony capitalism that will run his administration. Trump owns stock in the companies behind the pipeline, and Energy Transfer Partners CEO Kelcy Warren's support for the pipeline with major contributions during his campaign, is the definition of corruption. The president of the United States should not be trading favors with oil and gas corporations.

For Trump to claim he supports the pipeline because it will benefit all Americans is wrong and deluded. Millions of people will lose access to a clean water supply, including the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and the rest of America will face the impacts of catastrophic climate change from burning fossil fuels. The pipeline is good for Trump's wallet and his friends at Energy Transfer Partners and Phillips 66.

Trump's comments make it all the more important for President Obama to permanently protect Standing Rock immediately. The Army Corps of Engineers and Obama administration have the power to reject the pipeline for good and ensure Indigenous sovereignty is honored. It is clear that President-Elect Trump will ignore the rights and sovereignty afforded to Native American communities, but President Obama can still ensure the United States does the right thing for Standing Rock. It's time to stop the pipeline once and for all.