Coal Is Dying, But Hillary Clinton Has A Plan To Save Coal Communities

[Skidmore]

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2015/11/12/3721674/hillary-coal-plan/

snip--

“Today we are in the midst of a global energy transition,” the Plan For Revitalizing Coal Communities says, citing the rise of natural gas and renewable energy. “We can’t ignore the impact this transition is already having on mining communities, or the threat it poses to the healthcare and retirement security of coalfield workers and their families.”

Clinton’s plan calls for $30 billion towards infrastructure improvements, mine land remediation, training and education programs, and incentives for business investment in Appalachia, the Illinois Basin, and the Western coal areas.

“What I like about this plan is that it’s multi-faceted,” Evan Hansen, president of Downstream Strategies, a West Virginia-based environmental consulting firm, told ThinkProgress. “There is no one solution.”

Hansen pointed to education, for example. While many people in coal communities need training and education that will make them more attractive employees, training the workforce alone is not enough. The areas also need to bolster the businesses that will hire people, Hansen said, and that means improving standard of living in order to attract new investment. Clinton’s plan includes both infrastructure and broadband improvements....more

[jfern]

1. Coal is pretty dirty. Why wouldn't we want it to die?

[Blue_Adept]

2. Uh, we do?

The plan here is about how to help these areas transition out of it in all the complicated ways that it requires. Which can't be translated down to a fancy slogan.

[elleng]

4. We do, but we have to recognize,

as hrc seems to have done, that the effects on coal communities must be addressed; lots of people live there.

[Blue_Adept]

7. With the right kind of work it could turn into fascinating tourism areas

There's so much potential in moving these communities forward with the right investments.

[elleng]

9. Yes, and there is already a fair amount of tourism in WVA.

[AgingAmerican]

13. The coldest reception I ever got from people was in coal country

Everywhere we went they were super suspicious of me and my wife. Some guy at a gas station started trying to berate me for Washington plates on my car. When I walked up to his truck, he rolled up his window and locked his door and refused to look at me. When I looked around at other people there, they would shy away. Afterward I was sitting in the car looking at a map, and the gas station attendant lady came out and asked why we hadn't left yet.

It was weird. I can't imagine taking a vacation there.

[elleng]

18. Too bad. Had a fine time last year driving through,

visited the capitol where a festival of sorts was going on, and a good restaurant on the way out of the state.

Daughter attended college there too, a pretty positive experience.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

11. She doesn't want to save coal, just the people whose livelihoods depended on it.

Why would anybody have a problem with that?

[Armstead]

3. Good idea.

What would be even better would be to work to make W Va a center for manufacturing of solar cells and other alternative technologies. The symbolism of that would be great.

[elleng]

5. Yes, and maybe WIND and solar.

Challenging, considering the geography, but GOOD challenges, imo.

[joshcryer]

6. You will have a difficult time educating them.

The have very low education.

[Blue_Adept]

8. And this is why we lose them

[joshcryer]

12. They are trapped in a way.

Entire families brought up to dig dirt out of the ground. One worker caring for an entire family. And now with renewable energy gaining traction they are being boxed into a corner.

[kelliekat44]

21. They aren't dumb people. Just people who have not been able to be exposed to anything else. They

can be trained in jobs for clean energy. We just need some venture capitalists to take a chance on them and begin building industries in their areas. Since you folks smear Hillary for her connections to Wall Street don't be surprised if she uses those connections to further her ideas for investing in undeserved communities across the nation. She can be very convincing in this area and the capitalists will try wherever they see an opportunity to make a profit.

GO HILLARY!!!

[Cosmic Kitten]

29. There are NO JOBS coming

Wall St WON'T invest in rural communities.
They lack the technical training, infrastructure.
There is no PROFIT to be made for venture capitalists.

Quit dreaming.
Hillary won't save rural communities.

[jmowreader]

10. Don't worry, the GOP has a plan to solve the Displaced Coal Worker Problem

They just don't call it that.

If the Republicans get their way, health insurance companies will be able to sell policies across state lines. It'll take the insurance companies about two seconds to figure out the state line they want to sell it across is the one where they can charge the most. Not surprisingly, it's West Virginia.

Do you realize how many people it's gonna take to process premium payments and deny claims? In West Virginia they'll find all the help they need.

[RobertEarl]

14. Coal country hates Obama

Gee, could there be a correlation?

[Skidmore]

15. Your point being?

To what should we abandon the miners and their communities after the use of coal has passed, as it should.

[RobertEarl]

17. Tax the mine owners

Tax coal big time. How else do we raise 30 billion?

I think Hillary thinks of coal country as a possible base. CC sure does hate socialism and Obama. Why do they hate Obama?

[kelliekat44]

20. They hate Obama because they have been TOLD to hate him. Never given any reason to support him

even when he is trying to help them.

We give up on these people. Their "education" ought to begin with us, the Dems. They need to know that their Social Security IS a government program (they probably have been told otherwise). They need to know how tax dollars work FOR them when they have been struck by natural disasters. They need to feel that their government cares about them and who in the government has their back.

[Cosmic Kitten]

30. Above you said those people aren't stupid...

The fact that you think they don't
know Social Security is a Govt.
program belies your assertion.

It's 2015.
If they don't know who or what the
government is or does, that's a bigger
problem than Hillary can fix.

And, your assertion that they need to
"feel their government cares about them"
seems a bit paternalistic?

And , the govt doesn't love anyone,
it's an institution

This is a *we the people* operation.

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

[Wilms]

16. This sounds good. n/t

[kelliekat44]

19. This is a great idea! All of Appalachia would benefit. Most pol just ignore the needs of poor

whites and use them voting or combat fodder. Now if only the Clinton campaign is sharp enough to carry that message in person to these people BEFORE the GOP smears her more in those areas. They really should hire some folks from those areas to carry the message as well.

[Cosmic Kitten]

31. Just pandering, not a pragmatic plan

[Romulox]

22. Her husband's policies destroyed the Rust Belt. Why is coal country special? nt

[kelliekat44]

23. Automation destroyed the rust belt more. And the very name says it all "rust." Intrenched against

change and refusal to learn anything new. Rust.
Appalachia isn't any more special than other areas of the country that have been hit hard by automation and other technologies. And some of the same plans could be modified to help out those areas as well.

But living in the past and refusing to get into a life boat because it isn't a yacht makes no sense to me.

[Romulox]

25. That's ridiculous. "Rust belt" refers to the steel used in industry.

[Cosmic Kitten]

33. derp

[HereSince1628]

26. "Jobs gone south" is actually a factor in the rise of the DLC

The DLC came into being because the south did well economically across the late 70s and thereby gained power.

The one southern Gov. didn't destroy the Rust Belt, it was the pattern of jobs going south across Dixie.

The south looked pretty special in contrast to northern cities which were teetering on bankruptcy, like NYC, or were losing industry to southern cities was pretty obvious.

[SunSeeker]

24. Good. Coal country fears it will lose what few jobs they have.

We need to give them a financial reason to support a green economy.

[Cosmic Kitten]

34. We who? The whole economy is in distress...

well, aside from Hillary's Wall st cronies.
The casino capitalists are doing fine.

[SunSeeker]

39. Our economy is the strongest in the world right now, thanks to Obama.

Southern California, where I live, has had a dramatic turnaround, thanks to our Dem governor. Of course it is not enough, but we have come a long way since 2009.

[Cosmic Kitten]

42. Strongest in the world you say? link please.

And by what metric
do you judge such theories?

If our economy appears strong
it's because the EU and China
are on the brink of disaster.

Once one piece fails it's over for everyone.
pretending to be the *strongest economy*
won't avert disaster.

An actual *strong economy* would.

[SunSeeker]

43. Here you go.

http://m.kiplinger.com/article/investing/T019-C000-S002-u-s-economy-pulling-away-from-rest-of-world.html

[Cosmic Kitten]

45. That article pretends less bad equals *strong*

pfft

[Cha]

49. LOL Hey SunSeeker..

Thanks!

[Half-Century Man]

27. Sounds a lot like Bernie's infrastructure plan.

Combined with parts of his plan to restructure our fuel sources to renewable.

Except, if memory serves, he proposed 1 trillion.

[bobbobbins01]

28. Yeah, sounds like she took his plan...

Slapped coal miners on it to score points, and called it a day.

[BainsBane]

36. Workers need jobs

It's not pandering. It's essential. What a sad day it is that so-called progressives call that pandering. Meanwhile, people here defend immunity for gun corporations, votes against gun control, and votes for the Minutemen because apparently that's what a real "progressive" does rather than worry about Americans having jobs.

Those states are likely to remain red, but it doesn't mean their lives don't matter. As much as you might want the "revolution" to focus only on those who live in neighborhoods with schools good enough to prepare them for the "free" college provided by the taxes of workers you resent attention being paid to, not all Americans are so fortunate.

Something is seriously wrong when you object to jobs programs for American workers.

[Skidmore]

38. +1 Well spoken.

Nuance is important. There are so many levels to policy, budgeting, and legislating which are not being understood.

[bobbobbins01]

44. Except I didn't say I objected.

I'm all for it. I'm just pointing out that it is similar. She's like P Diddy, she invented the remix.

[frylock]

40. And we all know how impractical it was when Sanders proposed it.

#metoo

[BainsBane]

32. You mean Obama's infrastructure plan

Because he proposed it first.

[Cosmic Kitten]

35. How's that working our for everyone?

[BainsBane]

37. Do you need a recent history lesson?

There was a stimulus. It brought the country back from the brink of economic collapse, created a bunch of construction jobs so that we now have the lowest unemployment rate in over 20 years. However, it was not nearly as extensive as hoped because of congress, the same congress Bernie would have to get legislation through. The Constitution doesn't miraculous change because a new president is elected. The same constitutional limitations apply, which is why proposing $1 trillion for infrastructure, free college, or any of those other sweeping promises you all are so smitten with means exactly nada. At least the House if not the Senate too will remain GOP, regardless of who wins the nomination.

[Cosmic Kitten]

41. The stimulus was too small

and the unemployment numbers are bogus.

We have unemployed no longer counted.
Under-employment is epidemic.
And TPP is guaranteed to send
millions of jobs over seas.

No, it's not working because
the 1% is still hording wealth
and far to many people can't
make ends meet.
Reality.

[kelliekat44]

46. Calculation of unemployment hasn't changed for the last 15 years or more. May not be good enough

bogus...not.

I like her plan for families and communities of coal miners...it is really a targeted stimulus plan down at the grassroots level directed at people, not corporations as so many here complain about. AND remember, these people will not likely vote for Hillary and they hate Obama. So, to me, it's a plan to try to sincerely reach real people. She is going to be criticized for another government program costing tax dollars...but let that come from the GOP, not us. Even Rand Paul has not come up with a plan to help his own constituents.

I am satisfied that this is the first plan from any of the candidates that targets the real needs of people who are often marginalized, ignored, and looked down upon. They have been told to despise her and Obama and most Dems. They believe what they are told but this will be a new message for them to consider and hopefully something good will come of it once a Dem gets elected. Whatever her reasons, isn't enough that a plan has been put forth to actually help people?

[Cosmic Kitten]

47. Nothing in Hillary's plan is practical or pragmatic

Her plan is to convince people she has a *plan*.

There are NO JOBS coming.
There is no capital investments coming.
The economy is not improving for the 99%

Hillary is pandering to a community
that is starting to realize they are living
a way of life tied to the 19th century.

[sweetapogee]

48. correct

The truth of the matter is that there are about 92 million workers out of the work force. Add that to the 5% unemployment figure and look out.

Another truth is that there simply are not enough voters in the coal fields to get any kind of plan going. Their voices will be drowned out by the masses in the large metro areas who also want a slice of the pie.

Sorry if I offend anyone but that is the reality of the thing.