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by enraged_camel 3344 days ago
>>Trump can slow the decline of coal consumption but he can't reverse it.

He doesn't want to reverse it. He doesn't give a shit about coal. He only wants their votes, and the votes of similar industries who will view him as a defender of old-school industry.
1 comments
keebEz 3344 days ago
Same could be said for solar? The sunbelt is/was heavy on coal for energy production. Solar is a great fit for the sunbelt. The federal government subsidizing solar adoption is a direct transfer of money to southern states as well as a direct negative on WV/WY economies.

What is the relative value of marginal votes from those different areas...

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WalterSear 3344 days ago
This isn't about the votes from coal miners. It's about what coal stands for in the minds of rural white voters.
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yessql 3344 days ago
Exactly right. Coal mining as a job has declined much more than coal as fuel. It's just easier to blame regulations and outsourcing than to admit that people can't compete with machines in energy production and manufacturing.
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