Donald Trump says he would exit global climate accord, slash US oil regulation

BISMARCK, ND: Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, said on Thursday that he would pull the United States out of the UN global climate accord and slash environmental regulations on the energy industry if elected.

The comments deepen the contrast between the New York billionaire and his Democratic rivals for the White House, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, who both advocate a sharp turn toward renewable energy technology as a way to combat climate change.

"We're going to cancel the Paris climate agreement," Trump said at the Williston Basin Petroleum Conference in Bismark, the capital of North Dakota, the second largest U.S. oil-producing state. It was Trump's first speech detailing the energy policies he would advance from the White House.

Trump said he would invite TransCanada to reapply to build the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the United States, reversing a decision by the administration of President Barack Obama to block the project over environmental concerns.

"I want it built, but I want a piece of the profits," Trump said. "That's how we're going to make our country rich again."

"President Obama has done everything he can to get in the way of American energy," he said. "If crooked Hillary Clinton is in charge, things will get much worse, believe me."