CBC The Fifth Estate: The Money Pipeline (2017)

Duration: 45m42s
Resolution: 852x480
Video Format: AVC
Audio Format: AAC
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It's a story of dark money, dirty politics and powerful people. ​When Donald Trump gave TransCanada the nod to build a pipeline that would carry Canadian crude oil to the gulf of Mexico, it seemed like liquid gold for the Alberta-based company. But a group of angry farmers and activists in mid-western American states are trying everything they can to stop the 'ugly Canadians' from digging a pipeline and running oil through their beloved farmlands. But is anyone listening? Bob Mckeown investigates TransCanada’s influential allies in Washington and the deal to build Keystone XL.

• For nearly a decade, TransCanada waged an expensive ground campaign to win political and public support for the pipeline
• For example, in a single legislative session in Nebraska during a key debate over Keystone XL, TransCanada dwarfed all other political spending by special interest groups in the state, dropping more than $500,000 US on lobbying state senators, according to a 2015 report from Common Cause Nebraska, a citizen watchdog group
• The Canadian pipeline company spent millions influencing local state legislatures and Indigenous communities and allying itself with so-called "dark money" groups that helped sway U.S. public opinion around the Keystone XL pipeline and ultimately install a new oil-friendly administration in Washington