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Posted: 2017-06-19T09:09:51Z | Updated: 2017-06-20T00:50:18Z John Oliver Exposes Donald Trump's Biggest Lie About Coal Jobs | HuffPost
Comedy Donald Trump Coal Business and Finance

John Oliver Exposes Donald Trump's Biggest Lie About Coal Jobs

There are many reasons why most coal jobs won't be coming back.
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By

Overnight Editor, HuffPost

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Donald Trump says he loves coal miners and wants to put them back to work, but John Oliver  thinks the president is pretty clueless when it comes to what miners do every day.

The “Last Week Tonight ” host even found a clip from the campaign trail of Trump pretending to do... well... something:  

“He barely gets what mining is,” Oliver said. “He may well think it’s just running up to things that he wants and yelling, ‘Mine!’” 

Oliver pointed out that Trump’s promise to create more mining jobs was built on a lie. Coal jobs aren’t in decline because of the regulations the industry likes to blame but due to market forces, such as cheap natural gas. 

And when mines do open, automation means fewer human workers are needed to pull out the coal.

So what’s really going on? 

Oliver takes an in-depth look at the issue in the video above. 

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Before You Go

10 States That Burn The Most Coal
10. Florida(01 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:52,046 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:231,062 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 22.5%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 61.0%

Florida the third-largest consumer of energy in the country generated more than 52 thousand GWh of coal energy in 2014, 10th most of any state. However, there are no coal mining operations in The Sunshine State. All the coal burned in the state is shipped by barge and rail from other major mining states, primarily Illinois, West Virginia, and Kentucky. Florida is one of the most populous states in the country. So while the state produced the 10th highest amount of energy from coal in the country, this energy accounted for just 22.5% of the states electricity generation well below the share of coal-based electricity generation nationwide of 38.7%. Natural gas is of greater significance in Florida. More than 60% of the states energy came from natural gas, the fourth highest share in the country.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:Craig Litten/AP)
9. Michigan(02 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:53,086 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:105,821 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 50.2%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 10.9%

Roughly 50% of electricity in Michigan was generated by burning coal, a somewhat lower share from just a few years ago. In 2009, roughly two-thirds of electricity generated in the state was from coal. The major cause for this shift has been an increase in the states nuclear power output. State reactors generated more than 31 thousand GWh in 2014, or nearly 30% of the states electricity production, up from 21,000 GWh, or 21.6%, five years prior. While there was once a substantial coal mining operation in the state, there are no active mines currently. Michigan receives its coal by rail primarily from Kentucky and West Virginia.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
8. Missouri(03 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:72,746 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:88,074 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 82.6%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 4.5%

Nearly 83% of Missouris electricity was generated by coal last year. Plants burned more than 43 million tons of coal to produce nearly 73,000 GWh. Though Missouri is itself a coal producing state, only 1% of the coal it consumes is also mined there. Most of the coal burned in Missouri is shipped by freight train from Wyoming. The next biggest contributor to the states energy mix was nuclear power, which generated slightly more than 10% of Missouris energy in 2014. While many states are shifting to an increased reliance on natural gas, Missouri is not. The 3,952 GWh generated from natural gas in the state last year was only slightly higher than the 3,874 GWh generated in 2001. Missouris lack of any significant natural gas reserves may partially explain its lopsided energy mix.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:Whitney Curtis/Invision/AP)
7. West Virginia(04 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:77,510 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:81,162 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 95.5%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 0.8%

Last year, West Virginia generated the 19th most energy out of all states, producing roughly 81 thousand GWh. The state, however, generated the seventh most energy from coal, or 77,510 GWh. This amounted to 95.5% of West Virginias electricity generation, making West Virginia the most coal-dependent state in the country. This may not be surprising given the scope of the states coal mining industry. The states Appalachian Plateau region contains rich natural gas and coal deposits, and no state east of the Mississippi yields more coal each year than West Virginia. Roughly a quarter of the states coal stays in West Virginia, and the rest is shipped elsewhere to be turned into electricity. Consequently, while the state has just 0.5% of the countrys population, its resources are used to generate about 5% of total U.S. energy production.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:Bloomberg via Getty Images)
6. Pennsylvania(05 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:80,067 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:221,709 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 36.1%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 23.7%

Home to the coal-rich Appalachian Mountains, Pennsylvania is one of the largest coal-producing states in the country. Pennsylvania exported nearly $1.6 billion worth of coal in 2014 alone. The state is also one of the biggest consumers of coal in the country, and much of the coal mined in Pennsylvania stays there. The state generated 80,067 GWh from coal in 2014, the sixth highest amount of any state in the country. Despite its high coal consumption, Pennsylvania has a relatively diverse energy mix. Just over 36% of the Pennsylvanias energy came from coal, while 35.5% came from nuclear power, and 23.7% came from natural gas. Between nuclear power, natural gas, and coal, Pennsylvania is the leading energy producer in the eastern U.S.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
5. Kentucky(06 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:83,497 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:90,737 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 92.0%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 2.7%

With 92% of Kentuckys electricity coming from coal, only West Virginia relies more heavily on coal to keep the lights on. The state is the third largest producer of coal behind West Virginia and Wyoming, and one out of every four coal mines in the country can be found within the state. Roughly two-thirds of all coal mined in the state is exported. Apart from a small amount of hydroelectric energy, the state has almost no renewable energy generation at all.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:David Goldman/AP)
4. Illinois(07 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:87,371 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:202,352 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 43.2%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 2.7%

The fifth most populous state in the country, Illinois is a large consumer of energy. The state generated, 87.4 million MwH from 57.4 million tons of coal last year. Over the course of the last decade, nuclear power and coal have been alternating as the states the leading energy source. Last year, however, more than 48% of the Illinois electricity came from nuclear power, while 43.2% came from coal. No other state in the country derives more electricity from nuclear power, and only three other states derived more electricity from coal in 2014.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:David Mercer/AP)
3. Ohio(08 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:90,163 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:134,602 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 67.0%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 17.6%

Ohio is one of the largest generators of coal-based electricity in the country, with more than 90,000 GWh produced in 2014, which accounted for approximately 6% of all the electricity generated by coal in the country. Still, like the country as a whole, Ohio began to shift its reliance on coal in favor of natural gas. In 2003, 91.9% of the states electricity came from coal, while just 1.2% was derived from natural gas. Last year, 67% of the states energy came from coal, while 17.6% of the states energy generation was generated by natural gas. While Ohio has substantial coal mines, representing approximately 2% of the countrys total proved coal reserves, it imports approximately half of all the coal it uses, primarily from West Virginia.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
2. Indiana(09 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:97,729 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:115,634 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 84.5%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 8.3%

One of the nations top coal producers, about two-thirds of the coal mined in Indiana never leaves the state. Contributing to nearly 85% of the states total energy, coal is disproportionately represented in Indianas the energy mix. In 2014, the state consumed 48.9 million tons of coal, producing a total 97.7 million MwH. As in many other states, the consumption of natural gas is on the rise in Indiana. While natural gas produced only 1.9% of the states energy in 2004, a decade later, more than 8% of electricity in Indiana was generated by natural gas. Texas is the only state that consumes more coal than Indiana.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
1. Texas(10 of10)
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> 2014 coal electricity generation:148,174 GWh
> 2014 total electricity generation:437,236 GWh
> Coal as pct. total electricity generation: 33.9%
> Natural Gas as pct. electricity generation: 46.8%

The second largest state in the country, both by population and land area, Texas leads the nation in both energy production and energy consumption. In 2014, Texas consumed 102.7 million tons of coal, producing a total of 148.2 million MwH. Even though Texas generates more electricity from coal than any other state, coal is not the largest contributor to the states energy production. Nearly 47% of energy in Texas was generated by natural gas. Coal accounted for about 34% of the states energy mix. In order to meet the high energy demand across the state, Texas is also at the forefront of one renewable energy source. Last year, the state generated 37,400 GWh from wind, more than any other state in the country.

Read more at 24/7 Wall St. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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