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Thursday, July 25, 2013

Democrats from coal states form pro-coal group to fend off GOP's 'war on coal' attacks

Some Democratic lawmakers from coal states have been trying to distance themselves from President Obama's so-called "war on coal" by saying they don't support the president's climate initiative, a proposal many GOP members feel will help Republicans win mid-term elections. In response to the claims, some Democratic senators have launched their own pro-coal campaign, called the CoalBlue Project, Manuel Quinones reports for Environment & Energy News.

Nick Rahall
The group is backed by Reps. Nick Rahall of West Virginia and Bill Enyart ofIllinois, who are both up for re-election in 2014. Rahall this week joined several Republicans in "sending Obama a letter expressing 'grave concern' over forthcoming regulations to limit greenhouse gas emissions from power plants," Quinones notes. Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota are also on board. 

CoalBlue, "which is seeking 501(c)(4) nonprofit status from the Internal Revenue Service, wants to advocate within the Democratic Party for coal to remain a key U.S. energy source," Quinones writes. They are also "supportive of an energy agenda to reduce carbon emissions that also promotes technologies to burn coal in a cleaner fashion." (Read more)

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