Obama’s ‘Red Line Against Coal’

Thousands Of Jobs At Risk As EPA Targets ‘Reeling Coal Industry’ With Plans To ‘Take Coal Plants To The Guillotine’

SEN. MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “The President's decision today is an escalation of the War on Coal and what that really means for Kentucky families is an escalation of his War on Jobs and the Kentucky economy. This is another attempt by the President to fulfill his long-term commitment to shut down our nation’s coal mines… I will file a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act to ensure a vote to stop this devastating EPA rule." (Sen. McConnell, 9/20/13)

EPA To ‘Take Coal Plants To The Guillotine,’ ‘Consumers' Power Bills To Skyrocket’

“The Obama administration is preparing to draw a red line against coal...” ("Coal In Obama’s Climate Crosshairs," Politico, 9/19/13)

• “...yet another hit to a coal mining industry that is hemorrhaging jobs in states like West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.”< ("Coal In Obama’s Climate Crosshairs," Politico, 9/19/13)

“It's no secret that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was prepared to crack down on coal-fired power plants... This week, we learned just how far the EPA is willing to go in terms of its regulations.” (“Did The EPA Just Take Coal Plants To The Guillotine?” The Motley Fool, 9/13/13)

• “…could mean a moratorium on all new coal plants...” (“Will Coal Survive The EPA’s New Carbon Rules?” Washington Post, 9/20/13)
• “…could slam a door that's already closing fast for the reeling coal industry, industry officials and experts said Thursday. … ‘The president is legislating through regulatory bodies,’ said Lynn Seay, spokeswoman at Cecil-based Consol Energy Inc., which saw its stock drop 1.7 percent to $34.56 per share Thursday. ‘This is a dangerous and unnecessary action at a time when the U.S. continues to sluggishly inch toward economic recovery.’“ (“EPA's Proposed New Regulations Could Keep Coal Industry Reeling,” Tribune-Review [PA], 9/13/13)

“‘It's not going to be pretty,’ said Bill Raney, president of the West Virginia Coal Association. ‘I'm sure about that.’ … In just the past two years, West Virginia has lost about 2,400 mining jobs, and longstanding projections estimate that Southern West Virginia production is in the midst of a steep decline that will continue for years.” (“New EPA Rules Could Force Coal To Change,” Gazette-Mail [WV], 9/14/13)

“The coal industry says the EPA's proposed rule, if enacted, will lead to more coal plant closures and higher electric bills. It ‘would cause consumers' power bills to skyrocket over time and cause more pain at the plug than Americans have experienced at the pump,’ St. Louis-based Peabody Energy, the world's largest private-sector coal company, said in a statement.” (“EPA Proposes Strict Emission Limits On New Coal Plants,” USA Today, 9/20/13)

White House Plan: ‘War On Coal Is Exactly What’s Needed’

President’s plan ‘will raise consumers’ electricity prices’ “…the move to impose greenhouse gas limits on existing plants — which account for a third of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions and 40 percent of its carbon emissions — will raise consumers’ electricity prices in the short term as utilities are forced to shutter aging coal plants to comply with stricter pollution limits.” (“Obama To Take Sweeping Action On Climate,” Washington Post, 6/22/13)

• Power plants make up ‘nearly 68 percent of all electricity production’ “According to the Edison Electric Institute, a utility trade group, there are 1,142 coal-fired utilities in the United States and 3,967 natural-gas-fired plants, all of which would face new carbon limits under Obama’s proposal. Last year they accounted for nearly 68 percent of all electricity production, according to EEI…” (“Obama To Take Sweeping Action On Climate,” Washington Post, 6/22/13)

DANIEL P. SCHRAG, White House Climate Adviser: ‘A war on coal is exactly what’s needed’ “The one thing the president really needs to do now is to begin the process of shutting down the conventional coal plants. …a war on coal is exactly what’s needed.” (“Obama To Outline Ambitious Plan To Cut Greenhouse Gases,” The New York Times, 6/25/13)

Flashback:‘Under My Plan… Electricity Rates Would Necessarily Skyrocket’

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “Under my plan of a cap and trade system electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket, even, you know, regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad, because I'm capping greenhouse gases, coal powered plants, you know, natural gas, you name it, whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers.” (Barack Obama, Interview With The San Francisco Chronicle, 1/17/08)

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