Tag Archives: kentucky

Is Putin Making a First Move to De-Escalate?

by EllaBlocker Posted on March 3, 2014

Mother Jones

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From the LA Times:

Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to a German proposal for international observers to review the tense standoff in Ukraine’s Crimea area, a Kremlin news service dispatch indicated Monday.

The proposal for a “contact group” of mediating foreign diplomats and an observer delegation to assess Moscow’s claims that ethnic Russians are threatened with violence under Ukraine’s new leadership was made by German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a late Sunday phone call to Putin, her spokesman told journalists in Berlin on Monday.

Is this for real, or is it just a stalling tactic? There’s no telling, of course. But I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s at least semi-real, since it could provide a convenient excuse to call a halt to things. And that’s something Putin probably wants. I don’t know what his long-term plans in Crimea are, but I doubt that he has any appetite for a military incursion into the rest of Ukraine. That’s not because he’s voluntarily showing a sense of restraint. It’s because Russia just doesn’t have the military to pull it off. A few thousand troops in South Ossetia or Crimea is one thing, but even a minimal military presence in eastern Ukraine would be orders of magnitude more difficult and expensive. Unless Putin has truly gone around the bend and is willing to risk another Afghanistan or another Chechnya, that’s just not in the cards.

A lot of American pundits are pretty cavalier about Russia’s military capabilities, assuming they can do anything they want simply because Putin is such a tough guy. But it’s just not so. The Russian military might be up to an intervention in eastern Ukraine, but it would take pretty much everything they have. This is not the Red Army of old.

It’s also the case that although Putin may put on a brave show, he’s well aware that intervention in Ukraine would unite the West against him in no uncertain terms. Those same pundits who are so cavalier about Russian military strength are also far too willing to take Putin’s bravado at face value. That’s a mistake. He doesn’t want Russia cut off from the West, and neither do his oligarch buddies. He may be willing to pay a price for his incursion into Crimea, but he’s not willing to keep paying forever. As long as Western pressure continues to ratchet up, at some point he’ll start looking for a way out.

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Is Putin Making a First Move to De-Escalate?

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The 39 Worst Words, Phrases, and Parts of Speech of 2013

by Curtis Tangredi Posted on December 27, 2013

Mother Jones

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Many words were spoken in 2013. Not all of them were created equal. Here is a brief, but by no means complete, guide to the words and phrases (and symbols, and parts of speech) we’d like to retire in 2014.

Please print this out and post it to your refrigerator or cubicle wall for convenient access.

“#.” R.I.P., early Twitter feature. We’ll bury you next to your friend, the FourSquare check-in.

adverbs. Ban all adverbs. They’re mostly just gulp words, really.
“all the things.”

“because noun”: (i.e. “because science.”)

“brogurt.” No.

“classy.”

“controversial tweet.” There’s just no way to make this sound dignified, and besides, it leads to think pieces.
“cronut.”
“crowdsourced.”

“derp.” It’s been an emotional ride, but it’s time to send this one off on the ice floe.

“disrupt.” Luxury car apps aren’t disruptive.

“Donald Trump is considering a run for…” No, he’s not. He just isn’t. And if you’d like to get him unearned publicity, you should at least get some stock options out of it.

“doubled down.” Unless the candidate did it while biting into a delicious sandwich, let’s just say the candidate “reaffirmed his/her position” on transportation funding or burrito drones or whatever we’ll be discussing in 2014.

“…favorited a tweet you were mentioned in.” No one has ever wanted to know this.

“gaffe.” It’s going to be a long-enough election year as it is.

“game-changer.” What you’re describing probably won’t change the game. But if it does, would you want to spoil the moment with a cliche?

“Guy Fieri.” What if we all decided to just never mention him again? Would he disappear?

“hashtag.” This refers to the spoken utterance of the word “hashtag,” often accompanied by air-quotes. People can see you doing this.

“hipster.“ Wearing glasses is not something people do because they’re hipsters; it’s something people do because they’re nearsighted. People don’t drink hot chocolate because it’s a hipster thing to do; they drink hot chocolate because it’s literally liquid chocolate. Yes, I wrote “literally.” That’s what happens when you use a word so casually and carelessly in think pieces as to render it meaningless.

“I can’t even.” You can. Dig deep. Find your Kentucky.

“impact.” (When used as a verb.)
“…in .gifs.”

“…in one chart.” We’re aiming high in 2014. Two chart minimum!

“listicle.” This is the last one.

“literally the worst.” Actually, while we’re at it, let’s ban “literally.” Literally is the “not the Onion” of fake things.

“millennial.” Young people are living with their parents because their parents’ generation destroyed the global economy. Next.

“nondescript office park.” As opposed to the Frank Gehry ones.
“not the Onion.“

“Rethuglicans, Repugs,” “Republikkkans,” “Demoncrats,” “Dumbocrats,” and every other variation thereof. Please just use the normal proper nouns; you can add whatever modifier you like before or after.

“selfie.” But what do they tell us about our society, in the digital now? Let’s ask James Franco.

“Snowfall.” (In the future, a high-cost digital production that doesn’t live up to the hype shall be known as a “Skyfall.”)

“the Internets.” This was a George W. Bush joke or something, right? You can still use the Internet—just drop the “s.”
“This Town.”

“thought leader.” Mostly beaten out of existence, but don’t think we didn’t notice that Paul Allen interview, Wired. You’re on notice.

#YOLO. Seriously.

I am guilty of most of these sins. Let us never speak of this again.

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The 39 Worst Words, Phrases, and Parts of Speech of 2013

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The Filibuster Is Dead, But Blue Slips Are Still Alive and Kicking

by HiramDerry Posted on November 27, 2013

Mother Jones

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Last week, when Harry Reid destroyed democracy as we know it by eliminating the Senate filibuster for judicial nominees, one of my first thoughts was, “But what about blue slips?” It’s all very well to allow simple majorities to approve judges, but if Republican senators use the blue slip rule to keep them off the floor in the first place, then what good does it do?

As you may recall, the blue slip is a Senate tradition. If you’re nominating a judge for, say, a New York court, the two New York senators get a say in things. If they return their blue slips, they approve of the judge. If they don’t, the nomination grinds to a halt. Republicans have played games with the blue slip rule over the past couple of decades, requiring only one blue slip when a fellow Republican is president but two when a Democrat is president, but ever since the 2006 midterms Patrick Leahy has been chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and he’s a pretty straight shooter. Even though the current president is a fellow Democrat, Leahy consistently requires two blue slips for all nominees, which makes it easier for Republicans to block Obama’s judges. All they need is for one senator to withhold a blue slip, and the nomination is dead.

Leahy was presumably hoping that setting an example of fair-mindedness would prompt Republicans to act fairly too, and in this he was obviously wrong. Nonetheless, he hasn’t changed his tune on blue slips, and TPM’s Sahil Kapur wonders whether this is likely to change in the wake of filibuster reform:

“I assume no one will abuse the blue slip process like some have abused the use of the filibuster to block judicial nominees on the floor of the Senate,” Leahy said. “As long as the blue slip process is not being abused by home state senators, then I will see no reason to change that tradition.”

It remains to be seen whether Republicans will resort to withholding blue slips more frequently after the filibuster rule change. Some may be tempted to because it’s now their most powerful weapon to thwart Obama from filling up the judiciary with his preferred nominees. If so, it’ll put to the test Democrats’ willingness to uphold the tradition.

Republican senators have been pretty free about using their blue slip privileges already, so I’m not sure just how much more abuse is left. Jeffrey Toobin provides a quick summary:

The list of federal judicial vacancies tells an extraordinary story. For example, there are seven vacancies on the federal district courts in Texas….Republicans don’t agree to any of Obama’s choices, and so the seats stay vacant, sometimes for years….The story is much the same throughout the parts of the South and the West where Republican senators preside. There are three vacancies in Kentucky, three more in Georgia, and two in Alabama. And it’s not true just for the district court; Leahy has honored blue slips for circuit-court judgeships, as well. There are two vacancies each on the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits, which together cover most of the states in the old Confederacy.

….Fifty-one of Obama’s nominees are pending, and the vast majority of the remainder are either very recent or in Republican-controlled states….By employing the blue slip, Republican senators can stymie Obama’s nominees (or prevent them from even being nominated) without having to resort to the filibuster.

How much worse can this get? One reason for optimism is that because Democrats have now proven they can be pushed only so far, maybe Republican senators will pause a bit before upping the ante even more. We’ll see.

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The Filibuster Is Dead, But Blue Slips Are Still Alive and Kicking

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Eight more U.S. coal generators bite the dust

by 0df53x21 Posted on November 18, 2013

Eight more U.S. coal generators bite the dust

By

JHP

The Paradise Fossil Plant in Kentucky will shut down two of its three coal-burning units.

The Tennessee Valley Authority plans to shut down eight of its coal-burning generating stations in Alabama and Kentucky. Board members of the federally owned utility agreed to the plan last week, reacting to changing market conditions and federal environmental rules. The move will reduce coal generation by 3,300 megawatts in the two states.

The decision is being seen as a blow to the local coal industry, but a boon for the region’s air quality. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) met with TVA’s CEO in a bid to dissuade the utility from shuttering coal plants, but to no avail. Enviros, meanwhile, cheered the development.

Absent from the seemingly positive news, however, is any mention of renewables. Wind and solar farms are being built across the country, but TVA said it’s hoping to turn to natural gas and nuclear power to help it plug the gaps created by its abandonment of coal.

The Wall Street Journal reports:

Forty years ago, the TVA got more than 80% of its power from coal. Today coal accounts for 38%, a number that is dropping fast as a drilling boom in the U.S. pushes down the price of natural gas, the fuel that competes with coal for power generation.

When the TVA is done with its announced coal-plant retirements, only 33 of its 59 coal units will remain in service. Some of those are still under review, said TVA spokesman Duncan Mansfield. …

The company said that continuing to run the plants would risk noncompliance with new mercury rules coming into effect.

TVA leaders weren’t happy about the decision, but they can see the writing on the wall: Coal power is dying in the U.S. “This is a personal nightmare for me,” one board member told the Associated Press. “But I must support what I believe to be in the best interest of TVA’s customers.”


Source
In Blow to Coal, TVA to Shut 8 Units, The Wall Street Journal
Largest US public utility votes to close six coal-powered plants in Alabama, The Associated Press

John Upton is a science fan and green news boffin who tweets, posts articles to Facebook, and blogs about ecology. He welcomes reader questions, tips, and incoherent rants: johnupton@gmail.com.

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Eight more U.S. coal generators bite the dust

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Will dumping Australia’s climate-savvy prime minister help the climate?

by h0rt67bx11 Posted on June 28, 2013

Will dumping Australia’s climate-savvy prime minister help the climate?

By John Upton

Alpha

Kevin Rudd is Australia’s new prime minister, again. Now he has to defend that job from an opposition leader who once called climate science “crap.”

In terms of climate policy, Australians face a choice between fairly good and downright evil in an upcoming federal election.

The face of evil belongs to climate skeptic Tony Abbott, leader of the opposition Liberal Party (which, in topsy-turvy Down Under fashion, is in fact conservative).

And the face of relative good is … in some disarray at the moment. Power brokers in the Labor Party, which narrowly holds power in the country, this week stripped the prime ministership away from Julia Gillard and handed it back to former leader Kevin Rudd. They believe this move will help them win the election, which is tentatively scheduled for September.

The stakes are high. Australia is among the world’s worst per-person contributors to climate change. The country is a huge producer of coal, exporting a lot and consuming a good bit itself. And it’s been suffering heavily from climate change in recent years, enduring epic heat, drought, wildfires, and floods.

But lately, the country been trying to mend its ways, and setting a global example in doing so. Over the last six years, under first Rudd and then Gillard, the Labor Party has introduced policies and taxes designed to battle and adapt to climate change. Reports are confirming that the new taxes and policies are doing what they were intended to do: curb power plant carbon emissions and accelerate investment in renewable energy.

But Labor’s been flailing in the polls and weighed down by infighting. Rudd had been agitating for the top job for months, destabilizing the party. Now, after he was sworn in as prime minister on Thursday, Labor’s members of parliament are vying against each other for positions in his new cabinet, instead of focusing on their reelection campaigns.

The conservatives have not hidden their glee at the pre-election upheaval within the governing party:

Labor’s move was a desperate one, and it might very well backfire. But many in Australia just couldn’t see Gillard leading her party to another victory.

As a stubborn champion of new taxes on the powerful fossil fuel and mineral sectors, and as a tough-as-steel woman leading a country still plagued by machismo and misogyny (and as an unmarried atheist without any kids, to boot), Australia’s first female prime minister was the target of ruthless and incessant attacks on her character and leadership. She had sandwiches thrown at her by men making the statement that a woman’s place is in the kitchen. Political rallies supported by Abbott were held to “ditch the witch.” Guests at a political fundraiser were served “Julia Gillard Kentucky Fried Quail,” described on the menu as “Small Breasts, Huge Thighs & A Big Red Box.”

Now, with Rudd back in Kirribilli House, pundits are busily analyzing how the new prime minister’s climate policies might differ from the old one’s. He might change rules on how the prices for carbon emissions are set, for example.

Rudd, a nerdy policy wonk, once described climate change as the “great moral, environmental and economic challenge of our age.” He led the party during most of the first of its two consecutive terms in power, introducing climate-friendly policies before he was replaced by Gillard amid similar turmoil prior to the last election.

Gillard, though, had the courage to introduce climate taxes that had made Rudd hesitate (some would say wisely, politically speaking).

But while there are differences between the two leaders in their approach to climate and energy issues, they won’t matter if Labor loses the election. This week’s savage bloodletting was all about trying to avoid that outcome.

David Jackmanson

Tony Abbott, opposition leader and climate denier.

Abbott, for his part, once described the science behind climate change as “crap.” He has since recanted, but, as we explained in April, he has nonetheless pledged to eliminate the new carbon and mining taxes, dismantle a federal department of climate science advisers, and take other steps that would see the country retreat to its unbridled climate-changing ways of decades past.

Rudd now has until August or September to steady the Labor Party and navigate it to political victory (or thereabouts — as prime minister, he has the power to set the election date, which can be no later than Nov. 30). That won’t be easy amidst a political maelstrom of his own creating. But if his party can rediscover some unity, it won’t be impossible.

If Rudd does win, he’ll have a moral obligation to mull the environmental consequences of Australia’s substantial coal exports. But, then, that’s a world-warming beast that no leading Australian politician has shown any willingness to wrangle.

John Upton is a science fan and green news boffin who tweets, posts articles to Facebook, and blogs about ecology. He welcomes reader questions, tips, and incoherent rants: johnupton@gmail.com.

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Fukushima meltdown’s latest victims: American uranium jobs

by RubinkJoseph Posted on May 27, 2013

Fukushima meltdown’s latest victims: American uranium jobs

By John Upton

Department of Energy

The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant will shutter.

In comic books, radioactive disasters make stuff be massive. But in the real world, the Fukushima meltdown of 2011 is having the opposite effect on the worldwide nuclear power sector.

The sector is rapidly shrinking from the Hulk that it used to be, leading the U.S. government to announce on Friday that it is jumping out of the unprofitable uranium enrichment business.

The Energy Department is closing the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in western Kentucky at the end of the month. The plant opened in the 1950s to help the nation develop its nuclear arsenal, and in the 1960s it began enriching uranium for power plants. Federal officials say the refinery’s operations, which were privatized in the 1990s, are no longer sustainable. From Lex 18 News:

Soft demand for enriched uranium, stemming partly from the disaster in Japan when a tsunami crippled a nuclear plant, coupled with steep production costs triggered the decision, USEC spokesman Jeremy Derryberry said. Production will be phased out in the next month.

“We’ve been telegraphing for a long time that the plant had a limited lifetime,” Derryberry said. “That was only accelerated by what happened in Japan.”

Japan was an important market for the Paducah plant’s enriched uranium, but nearly all of Japan’s workable reactors have been offline since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami triggered multiple meltdowns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant.

“What that essentially does is take a huge chunk of demand out of the market, at least in the near term,” Derryberry said. “With no demand, there’s an excess of supply. Prices go down. We just haven’t been able to find additional customers for the plant’s capacity.”

The Courier-Journal reports that the land upon which the facility operates is heavily polluted and that the government’s decision to close it has long been anticipated:

A Courier-Journal series in 2000 revealed that waterways, underground water, soil, plants and animals had been contaminated with some of the most dangerous chemicals known, including plutonium and dioxin.

“We will certainly work hard to keep the funding up” for the cleanup, Newberry said.

The Obama administration has been reluctant to keep the plant open. But a year ago, then-Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced a one-year extension under which the federal government and energy suppliers provided a market for the uranium.

But Chu also told [Senate minority leader Mitch] McConnell at a 2011 Senate hearing that 1950s technology used to enrich uranium for nuclear power plants was “energy-intensive, and I would rather us invest in more forward-leaning technologies.”

The closure will hit McCracken County hard, with at least 1,000 uranium enrichment-related jobs set to be lost. Meanwhile, the number of coal jobs in the state is at its lowest level since record-keeping began in 1950.

Some state lawmakers have been trying to give the state’s economy and workforce an Incredible Hulk-colored jolt by pushing the Clean Energy Opportunity Act. The legislation would force utilities to sell increasing amounts of renewable energy, implement energy efficiency measures and take other labor-intensive strides towards greening the state’s coal-dependent grid.

Despite one projection that the act could sustain as many as 2,8000 jobs every year over a decade and reduce electricity prices, the legislature let the bill die last year, with some lawmakers saying it would threaten the state’s coal sector. The legislation was reintroduced in February, but it has yet to receive so much as a committee hearing.

John Upton is a science fan and green news boffin who

tweets

, posts articles to

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, and

blogs about ecology

. He welcomes reader questions, tips, and incoherent rants:

johnupton@gmail.com

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How coal is keeping its firm grip on miners and elected officials

by DenaeTina858 Posted on January 29, 2013

How coal is keeping its firm grip on miners and elected officials

By Philip Bump

Shutterstock

The coal industry is far more effective at preserving its political and economic power than it is at innovating cheap ways of getting coal out of the ground. In its push for continued relevance, the industry takes no prisoners in the mines or on Capitol Hill.

Consider the case of Reuben Shemwell, as told by Huffington Post:

Shemwell’s troubles started in September 2011. After his year and a half as a welder at mining properties in Western Kentucky, [Armstrong Coal] management fired the 32-year-old for what supervisors deemed “excessive cell phone use” on the job — an allegation Shemwell denied. Furthermore, Shemwell argued that the cell phone charge was merely a pretext for his firing. In subsequent court filings, he claimed the real reason he was canned was that he’d complained about safety problems at his worksite.

According to Shemwell’s filings with the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), the federal agency responsible for protecting miners, Shemwell had refused to work in confined spaces where he’d been overcome by fumes, and he’d complained to a superior that the respirators provided to welders were inadequate. Shortly before Shemwell was fired, he and a colleague also refused to work on an excavator while it was in operation, according to filings.

Not long after Shemwell filed his discrimination complaint, MSHA officials tried to inspect the site where he’d been working. According to court documents, Armstrong chose to shut the site down rather than subject it to MSHA oversight, which management said would be too costly. Ten workers were laid off.

The government decided not to hear a discrimination complaint Shemwell filed, which should have ended things — albeit unhappily for Shemwell. It didn’t.

Armstrong filed suit against Shemwell in Kentucky state court, claiming that the miner had filed a “false discrimination claim” against them, and that his claim amounted to “wrongful use of civil proceedings” — akin to a frivolous lawsuit.

Shemwell and his attorneys think that Armstrong Coal’s motive isn’t to repair its good name (assuming it once had a good name). Rather, the goal is to curtail complaints from employees and stifle whistleblowers. Efforts to silence employees drawing attention to safety concerns is hardly a new phenomenon; in 2011, whistleblowing miner Charles Scott Howard was fired by Cumberland River Coal, and then, after a court found the firing to be unjust, reinstated. What’s new in the Shemwell case is that Armstrong Coal took a further retaliatory step.

Despite wails during last year’s election that Obama was killing the coal industry, Big Coal appears to be feeling pretty confident. Politico reports on an emboldened industry:

The mining industry is optimistic about wielding Congress and the courts this year to push an agenda focused on expanding mining on federal lands and coal export capacity, as well as fighting EPA’s greenhouse gas regulations.

“There’s not one corner of the Congress where we don’t have strong friends,” said Rich Nolan, the National Mining Association’s senior vice president for government affairs. …

“We have a strong base both in committee and in the House floor,” Nolan said.

This is true. And as it happens, contributions from the coal mining industry to congressional candidates neared $5.5 million in the 2011-2012 cycle. The average contribution to House candidates spiked.

Open Secrets

There’s not one corner of the Congress where the mining industry doesn’t have strong friends. Some of those friends even stop by for parties.

Yesterday, the National Mining Association gave a briefing to the media on its outlook for the year. In summary: It’s bright. The Charleston Gazette was there and quoted NMA President Hal Quinn: “The outlook for U.S. coal and minerals mining in 2013 is positive due to clear improvements in key sectors of the U.S. economy and the global demand for mined products, particularly in developing economies.” Quinn later reverted to 2012′s talking points, critiquing government measures that could slow production — things like EPA regulations on air pollution and increased government response to repeated mine violations. The future is bright — but it could be brighter.

It is certainly the case that the industry would like to expand. And it’s true that coal use continues nearly unabated internationally. But that doesn’t mean that the coal industry, particularly in Appalachia, is doing well. So the same scramble continues — punishing dissension among employees and currying favor in Washington.

If only the industry actually spent as much time and money and energy cleaning up its product. But, then, that wouldn’t make so much money.

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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Farmers hope to plow the way for sustainable U.S. hemp

by sreg2 Posted on January 15, 2013

Farmers hope to plow the way for sustainable U.S. hemp

By Susie Cagle

A couple months ago, I asked if industrial hemp would make a resurgence thanks to new legalization and cultural acceptance of cannabis. A real hemp industry could be as much as 10 times bigger than legal marijuana, which is already a potentially $1 billion industry in Washington and $200 million in Colorado.

MisterQuill

But back in November, farmers were a little skittish. “Yes yes, the U.S. is the biggest consumer of hemp which is pretty damn sustainable compared to other fibers and grows relatively easily without a bunch of pesticides, but the federal government is crazy and they’re giving us so much money for all this corn!” they said (approximately).

Still, some farmers, like Michael Bowman in Colorado, are determined to cultivate the evil plant. “Can we just stop being stupid? Can we just talk about how things need to change?” Bowman asked The Washington Post, which did not have a very good answer.

Bowman’s project to plant 100 acres of hemp on his 3,000-acre farm on April 30 — to coincide with the 80th birthday of his friend singer Willie Nelson, known for his support for hemp and marijuana legalization — could run afoul of the Agriculture Department’s farm program, which helps subsidize his corn and wheat. He also grows edible beans, alfalfa and, occasionally, sunflowers.

In a statement, Agriculture Department spokesman Justin DeJong said that since hemp is considered “a Schedule I controlled substance” under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, it “cannot be grown on farmland” receiving federal commodity subsidies. If convicted of a violation, a farmer cannot get subsidies for five years.

Efforts to plant this seed aren’t just relegated to Washington and Colorado, with their newly legal marijuana. “If we’re serious about climate change and the environment, there is no single thing we can do that is more impactful,” said Denver-based hemp-farming advocate Lynda Parker, who may or may not be smoking something. But hemp is also serious business, of the money-and-jobs kind.

In Kentucky, the hemp-growing capital of the post-prohibition era, legislators are backing an initiative that would put cannabis back in the ground. “Everybody says they are for job creation, but supporting industrial hemp is their chance to prove it,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said of the proposal. Paul and Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer are pushing the initiative.

From Central Kentucky News:

Some law enforcement officials say that with the current economic climate, it is time to at least explore changing the legality of growing hemp for industrial purposes …

“If there is a way to keep the legal side of hemp away from illegal marijuana, then I have no problem with legalizing hemp,” Lancaster Police Chief Rodney Kidd said. “But I am not into ‘go grow and be happy.’”

Politicians in Virginia are also clamoring for legalization of hemp farming to pick up where manufacturing and tobacco jobs have fallen off.

The Hemp Farming Act of 2012 is still kind of being kicked around, but state initiatives seem more likely to succeed. Still, unless federal priorities change, farmers who take on hemp will always be doing so under great legal and economic threat. It’s too bad there’s nothing the feds could take to just, like, totally chill out, right?

Susie Cagle writes and draws news for Grist. She also writes and draws tweets for

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Words the coal industry doesn’t want to hear: Senator Ashley Judd

by Myrna Posted on December 4, 2012

Words the coal industry doesn’t want to hear: Senator Ashley Judd

By Philip Bump

Here is Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) saying something very stupid in late 2010:

That was his political priority for two years. It’s not clear that he currently has any political priorities; our attempts to reach out to his office didn’t happen.

How does that priority compare with those of, say, Hollywood celebrity Ashley Judd? Well, here’s Judd speaking out against mountaintop-removal mining at the Kentucky state house.

Think Judd might make a better senator than McConnell? Well, so does she.

From Politico:

s_bukley / Shutterstock.com

The Hollywood movie star and eighth-generation Kentuckian is seriously exploring a 2014 run for the Senate to take on the powerful Republican leader, four people familiar with the matter tell POLITICO. In recent weeks, Judd has spoken with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) about the possibility of a run, has discussed a potential bid with a Democratic pollster and has begun to conduct opposition research on herself to see where she’s most vulnerable in the Bluegrass State, sources say.

A Senate race would be an extremely steep hill to climb for Judd. Not only is McConnell deeply entrenched in the Washington establishment, but Judd is strongly progressive (see ThinkProgress’ overview of her credentials, including on climate change). Kentucky is … not. Romney won the state by 23 points — a wider spread than McCain’s 16 in 2008.

Worse for her political prospects, Judd’s anti-coal activism became a coal-country symbol of outside agitation against mining and, thanks to the ill-advised reference below, classism.

“I’m not too keen on reinforcing stereotypes about my people, but I don’t know a lot of hillbillies who golf,” Judd said in [a 2010] speech.

Those comments angered individuals associated with the mining industry and the golf courses built on former mine sites, like the StoneCrest Golf Club, where the sign was found.

“She’s not an eastern Kentuckian. A real eastern Kentuckian never would have degraded the people here by saying hillbillies don’t play golf,” David Gooch, president of the Coal Operator’s Association, told local TV station WKYT.

The Washington Post lists various celebrities who have tried — and failed — to seek high office previously. Most who won did so in unique circumstances: recalls, three-person races, etc.

One spot of good news for Judd: 2012 seems to have demonstrated that the “coal vote” is a bit of a paper tiger. Both Romney and Obama vied heavily for coal-producing areas in Ohio, and Obama emerged victorious.

And another: McConnell only won his 2008 reelection by six points — and he wasn’t running against a Hollywood celebrity who is married to a race car driver and who is part of a country music dynasty. And who loves dogs, for Pete’s sake.

One thing is for sure. If the campaign comes down to the ability to tell jokes, a professional actress has to do better than this:

And Ashley Judd now knows better than to joke about golf.

Philip Bump writes about the news for Gristmill. He also uses Twitter a whole lot.

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Words the coal industry doesn’t want to hear: Senator Ashley Judd

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