President Joe Biden this week approved ConocoPhillips’ Willow oil project on Alaska’s North Slope. The approval came despite massive pressure from environmental groups to kill the project, who see it as a black mark on Biden’s broader efforts to deal with climate change.

Meanwhile, Alaska political leaders — especially the state’s bipartisan congressional delegation — are celebrating Willow’s approval as a huge win.

Host Elizabeth Harball talks with ADN reporters Alex DeMarban and Riley Rogerson about how the Willow project became a national-level controversy, and what may have led Biden to approve it.

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This episode of ADN Politics is sponsored by SteamDot Coffee.