President Donald Trump is dusting off the Defense Production Act - a Cold War-era statute originally designed to make sure the U.S. could out-produce the Soviets in a national emergency - to hand $700 million to coal-fired power plants. Because nothing says "national need" like burning the most carbon-dense fossil fuel on the planet for old times' sake.
"Today, we're taking historic action to bring down the price of energy and the cost of living for all Americans with the power of clean, beautiful coal," Trump said at a Thursday press conference, apparently operating under the theory that if you say a thing enough times, atmospheric chemistry will change to accommodate you.
The funds will protect 14 existing coal plants and 42 coal mines, build two new coal plants (in Alaska and West Virginia), construct a massive new coal export terminal in Oakland, California, and restart an existing facility in Maryland. The existing plants span 10 states - West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Indiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Arizona, Oklahoma, North Dakota, and Wisconsin - all of which, Trump proudly noted, voted for him. "We won them all," he said.
Environmental groups were not amused. "It is disgusting and reprehensible that the president of the United States is giving away our taxpayer dollars to deadly and expensive coal plants that will make Americans sicker and drive up electricity prices even more," said Patrick Drupp, climate policy director of the Sierra Club. "This handout betrays everything Donald Trump promised and only serves his big coal buddies who stroke his ego and hand him shiny trophies."
The administration has spent the past year doling out hundreds of millions to coal, forcing ratepayers to pay extra for aging plants, dismantling environmental rules, and even debuting a mascot named Coalie - a lump of coal with giant eyes, because nothing says "clean energy" like a sentient rock.
"You're not allowed to say 'coal' within the Trump administration unless it's preceded by the words 'clean, beautiful,'" Trump explained. "Complicates our life, but it's good."
Reality, however, is less obliging. Coal is not clean. It is the most carbon-dense fossil fuel, a leading cause of the climate crisis, and a source of tiny toxic particles that sicken miners and trigger respiratory and heart problems. Research estimates that as many as 460,000 U.S. deaths from 1999 to 2020 were attributable to air pollution from coal plants alone.
Despite Trump's claims that his pro-coal actions will lower energy bills and that wind power is "the most expensive energy," experts counter that coal plants are more expensive to build and operate than renewables. Meanwhile, U.S. coal production is currently less than half what it was in 2008, and more people now work in Waffle Houses than in coal mines.
"What's next, a taxpayer bailout to build new phone booths?" asked Kit Kennedy, a senior climate campaigner at the Natural Resources Defense Council. "This is going to mean higher bills and dirtier air. What a waste."
The coal industry, naturally, applauded the move. Rich Nolan, CEO of the National Mining Association, argued that coal generation shields consumers from volatile energy prices and supply challenges - and that ramped-up production will help meet electricity demand from the surging AI sector. Because if there's one thing artificial intelligence needs, it's more soot.
The Environmental Protection Agency also announced plans to change an Obama-era emissions reduction plan that would have shuttered the Dave Johnston Unit 3 power plant in Wyoming. Trump railed against his predecessors for scaling back coal power, claiming that under "Sleepy Joe Biden" not a single new coal mining permit was approved, while his administration has approved 76. "Clean, beautiful" ones, presumably.