The Trump Effect… This Week’s Recap 8/4/17

by with No Comment Media

Whether you’re on the Left, Center, or Right… listen to their words and draw your own conclusions…

At a Trump rally Thursday night (8/3/17) West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice announced his decision to flip from the Democratic Party to the GOP:

“Today I will tell you with lots of prayers and lots of thinking, I’ll tell you West Virginians, I can’t help you any more being a Democrat governor.” 

At the same rally, Trump responded to the ongoing Russia investigation:

“We didn’t win because of Russia. We won because of you… The Russia story is a total fabrication. It’s just an excuse for the greatest loss in the history of American politics.”

Special Counsel Robert Mueller issued grand jury subpoenas this week as the next step in his investigation. Special counsel to the President Ty Cobb responded:

“The White House favors anything that accelerates the conclusion of his work fairly… The White House is committed to fully cooperating with Mr. Mueller.”

Republican Senator Lindsay Graham on whether or not Trump lied about helping his son write a misleading statement about his meeting with a Russia lawyer in 2016:

“If that’s true then that was a bad decision by the President which will make us ask more questions… When you get caught in a lie about one thing, it makes it hard to just say ‘let the other stuff go.'” 

Recently released transcripts reveal Trump’s comments in his January (2017) conversation with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto:

“We have a massive drug problem where kids are becoming addicted to drugs because the drugs are being sold for less money than candy… I won New Hampshire because New Hampshire is a drug-infested den.” 

(Trump won the Republican primary in New Hampshire, but he lost the state to Hillary Clinton in last years presidential election by roughly 3,000 votes.)

New Hampshire’s Republican Governor Chris Sununu responded to Trump’s statement:

“It’s disappointing his mischaracterization of this epidemic ignores the great things this state has to offer.”

New Hampshire Democratic Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter also responded:

“No, Mr. President, you’re wrong about New Hampshire – but you have failed to help us fight the opioid crisis… Stop attacking health care, and make the investments you promised.”

The Trump Admistration hopes to cut legal immigration to the United States by nearly half. As critics piled on, Trump responded:

“This legislation will not only restore our competitive edge in the 21st century, but it will restore the sacred bonds of trust between America and its citizens. This legislation demonstrates our compassion for struggling American families who deserve an immigration system that puts their needs first and that puts America first.”  

Betrayal of the Coal Miner

by with No Comment Uncategorized

No, coal is not coming back.

Among President Trump’s many campaign promises was to bring coal back, claiming to increase jobs to miners who are unemployed. Experts disagree, and cite a number of reasons, not the least of which is that other forms – including natural gas, hydroelectricity, and solar – have replaced coal as a viable and sustainable source of energy.

This is nothing new. Alternative sources of energy have been outpacing coal for years now. While federal regulations aimed at improving public health increased the pace of decline, experts say that natural gas is largely to blame. Cheaper and cleaner than coal, natural gas has increased in market share, forcing out coal as the dominant source of energy in this country.

The entire coal industry employed around 53,000 in 2016 – 25,000 of which are directly related to the actual mining and processing of coal. The industry has seen a nearly 39 percent decline since its most recent peak in 2008. Coal makes up a very small percentage of total employment numbers in this country.

The problem with this empty promise is that the vast majority of coal mining jobs are isolated to small pockets of Wyoming, West Virginia and Kentucky, where some 585 million tons of coal are extracted and processed. This means that miners are concentrated in very small areas where it is just about the only game in town. This puts those who work in the mines in a very precarious position. Most employed in the mining industry come from generations of family members who also made a living that way. This small section of the labor force saw Trump as the hero of the coal miner. So far, his actions have been anything but heroic.

The main driver of the promise, however, is that Trump has friends in the coal industry. Coal magnates like Wilbur Ross, the current commerce secretary, have been tight with Trump for years. Ross was the owner of the Sago Mine at the time of the explosion in 2006, killing 12 miners. He is also indirectly responsible, along with other investors of a failing mine they purchased, for stripping the health benefits of miners – some of which had black lung disease. Trump, Ross, and other billionaires are no friends of the people. Their sole goal is to line their pockets without a thought to the people whose lives are destroyed in the process.

It could be that Trump and his supporters genuinely believe that coal mining can come back into favor. This is dangerously delusional and patently unrealistic, and the laughable and completely bogus campaign of “clean coal” is intended to bolster that belief.

The bottom line: Trump is selling a bill of goods. There is no possible way that coal can come back to employ all those who have suffered in the wake of the decline. But some organizations are trying to help the coal miners train for and find skilled work in other sectors. But, Trump is seeking to axe those programs, putting unemployed miners in greater jeopardy.