‘Coal’s not back’: Miners union president slams Trump’s lies about saving the coal industry
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
‘Coal’s not back’: Miners union president slams Trump’s lies about saving the coal industry
Donald Trump campaigned on a pledge to save the dirtiest of fossil fuels. And just over a year ago declared at a West Virginia rally, “ We are back. The coal industry is back. ”
But the reality is quite different, with more coal-fired power plant shutdowns under Trump in his first two years in office than in Obama’s entire first term!
So it’s no surprise that those who actually work in the industry disagree with Trump’s rosy outlook.
Cecil Roberts, United Mine Workers of America President, shut down all of Trump’s false bravado this week, explaining that the “harsh reality” is quite different from the president’s wild exaggerations:
“ Coal’s not back. Nobody saved the coal industry .
Roberts says that all of Trump’s huffing and puffing amounts to nothing more than simply keeping the coal industry “in existence.” However, he points out that the industry as a whole is still shrinking and more and more jobs continue to be lost.
Indeed, Trump’s own Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects coal production will hit a four-decade low in 2019 and drop again in 2020
Roberts and other miners have begged Trump to give them some time and consideration, to discuss the issues that they are facing in the dying industry. Brandon Pearson, one of the protesting Blackjewel miners , says they need Trump on their side:
“We’re struggling, and I hope and I pray that Donald Trump can see my message and hear my voice. I’m just one of many voices crying out, saying we need help we need something and we need him here…. A tweet would be great.”
Some may think that Trump cares more about rolling back Obama’s legacy than he does about the actual coal miners that are facing premature deaths and bankrupt pensions .
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Trump will campaign for re-election on a blizzard of lies.
meh, most of those with an IQ under 65 will still vote for him and the rest can deal opioids.
Meh, most of those with an IQ under 65 will oppose him and the rest can abuse themselves with opioids.
Way to not call out trump for the liar he is.
What? Did he think the coal industry would turn on a fucking dime once Obama left office? It takes time to undo EO's and EPA imposed regulations. During that time coal plants were being taxed and regulated at Obama administration standards, so they were still shutting down. How stupid is he?
Oh, and then to move the goal post and talk about things Trump never promised such as premature deaths and bankrupt pensions? How about someone ask this moron (sorry giving a bad name to morons) what the Democrats are offering? Besides Jack shit of nothing. Sorry, no Obama UAW pension bailout by the US tax payers. No US government give away of the coal industry to the Coal Union.
Coal is a dying industry, and Trump has extended it's life expectancy; which is far more than the Democrats are offering.
The coal industry is dying and has been for some time.
Trump's promise to bring back coal was never going to work. Natural gas and renewables which are cheaper, cleaner has replaced coal and will continue to do so.
Two more coal mines just closed in Wyoming closed with 700 miners losing their jobs. The company, Blackjewel, declared bankruptcy.
Maybe if the coal miners read something other than racing forms and sport's recaps, they would have known that their industry was like buggy whips and button hooks, both who once served a purpose, but phased out. Self education would have shown them that Trump was making empty promises which he could never deliver on. They counted on him throwing them a rope, which he did.....both ends.
First fucking line of the article, wally.
The Trump administration has opened a new front in battles over US climate policy by overhauling rules for power plant emissions to try to help the coal industry.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule is intended to comply with legal requirements to control carbon dioxide emissions from electricity generation while minimising intervention in the industry. The agency published the final version on Wednesday.
States including New York and environmental groups are promising to challenge the new rules in court. The resulting legal battles are likely to drag on into 2021, by which time it is possible there will be a Democratic president who could change policy.
Mr Trump said he would put American coal miners “back to work”, but the upturn in the industry’s employment has been modest. There were 52,800 people employed in US coal mining last month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, up 1,800 since Mr Trump’s inauguration in January 2017 but still well down from the 86,200 working in the sector when Barack Obama took office in 2009.
In a sign of the continued pressure to cut costs in the US coal industry, two of the largest mining groups, Peabody Energy and Arch Coal, announced on Wednesday that they were combining their assets in Wyoming and Colorado into a joint venture, with the aim of saving $120m a year.
Although a future Democratic president would be expected to reinstate an attempt to cut emissions along the lines of the CPP, court decisions on the ACE rule could mean the administration’s policy influences US policy even after Mr Trump leaves office....https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.ft.com/content/0da01384-92b0-11e9-aea1-2b1d33ac3271
Coal is NOT coming back and that's the facts jack.
No one ever said it was. But Trump has extended it's life far past what Obama's EO's and EPA self action regulations would have allowed. Save is a relative term. Trump saved the coal industry from a Democratic enacted early demise.
No one has answered what the Democrats are doing for the coal industry and miners- outside of jack shit of nothing.
Let's see if the Democratic candidates accept the Miners Union invite to court their vote in an open debate.
I am sure the Democratic insane exploding clown car of candidates would love to give coal miners their vision of a future of no coal; with miners fully unemployed, no pensions, and future health issues waiting.
Of course the Democrats don't give a shit about the coal miners as they are mostly white and male.
Trump made promises to bring back coal...It didn't happen and won't happen in the future no matter what party is in charge..There is no point in trying to ''save'' a terminal patient.
In addtion to the fact, NG is far less expensive and much cleaner. The coal companies are automating every possible job.
MUVA mentioned about exporting more. We are the 4th largest exporter of coal in the world. That isn't going to save us since more and more countries are exporting more coal. (Mongolia)
Many industries have disappeared or are only a shadow of their former self. This is the future coal.
It isn't political except for the fact that Trump made promises to the coal miners that are not realistic.
It's that simple.
True...
Sounds like liberals have a reason to vote for Trump.