Trump directs Pentagon to purchase coal-fired electricity

[groundloop]

Source: UPI

President Donald Trump has directed the Pentagon to purchase coal-fired electricity to boost domestic coal production, a move that has drawn staunch criticism from energy and environmental experts.

Trump issued the directive via an executive order that he signed Thursday at the end of a White House ceremony attended by coal executives called "The Champion of Coal Event."

"We're going to be buying a lot of coal through the military now," he said. "And it's going to be less expensive and actually much more effective than what we have been using for many, many years. And again, with the environmental progress that's been made on coal, it's going to be just as clean."

The executive order directs the Department of Defense to approve agreements with coal-fired power facilities to serve its installations and other mission-critical facilities.

Read more: https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2026/02/12/Trump-executive-order-Department-Defense-purchase-coal/9401770882099/

[Walleye]

1. Talk about gaslighting, there's no such thing as clean coal

I’m sure Donald Trump has never been in a coal bin or even held a lump of coal in his hand so what does he know?

[Xolodno]

18. Maybe he held coal...

...during Xmas? And was just happy to get any gift from Santa?

[Ray Bruns]

2. How in god's name is the pentagon going to choose which power plant they are going to buy power from?

It’s not how the electrical grid works.

[jgmiller]

3. Along with his love of WW2 battleships now he wants WW1 coal fired ships I guess N/T

[cstanleytech]

7. Ya, all battleships are glorified aircraft carriers but without the air support to attack and defend themselves with.

In other words they are giant clay pigeons with a "SHOOT ME HERE!!!" sign.

[CousinIT]

4. The definition of government waste, fraud, and abuse. n/t

[gab13by13]

5. I worked at a Clay Plant to make money for college

We made tile pipe and flu liners. One summer, my last month of work I got to fire kilns. The kilns were huge igloo-shaped structures made of brick and the clay tile were placed inside to be cooked.
There were 10 fire boxes spaced around the kiln that I had to shovel coal into, and get the clinkers out with a bar that weighed almost as much as me. You had to watch the fire would blow back on you. The trick was to raise the temperature inside the kiln so many degrees every 8 hour shift, work was around the clock.
I worked firing kilns for about a month before I had to go back to school. I spit black for 2 weeks after I quit.
After many years the owner decided to switch to natural gas, no fireman was needed and the temperatures could be much better regulated.

Also, someone should show Krasnov pictures of Pittsburgh before and after heavy coal usage.

[GB_RN]

6. Example Number 40,000,000,000...

Showing, once again, that everything Cantaloupe Caligula the Corpulent touches, dies/turns to shit.

What. An. Asshole.

[angrychair]

8. Hell yeah!!

We are going steam punk! That is the modernized military that people have been asking for: steam powered, lots of valves and gears and smoke and pollution.

It perfectly fits into our new dystopian hellscape.

[angrychair]

9. Seriously

I don't know what this means. The more I read it the more insane it is and the less sense this makes.

What the hell is going on?!? Like facilities? Like bases? Are we taking facilities off the normal power grid and building coal fired power plants? Are we going to have members of the military working in coal fired power plants shoveling coal?

None of this makes sense.

[GCG]

10. The problem with this foolish idea...

For a coal fired power plant you need railroad tracks running to the plant bringing train cars full of coal. You need to dump that coal into a crusher which grinds the coal into fine powder which is sprayed into a furnace. After the coal powder is burned you need to empty out the furnace of all the leftover hazardous materials and load them into train cars that haul the hazardous materials to storage facilities which poison all the local streams and rivers.

Operating a coal fired power plant is considerately more expensive than natural gas plant. Coal powered power plants can't turn a profit and is a bad business decision.

[groundloop]

15. but but but...... CLEAN COAL.

tRump understands none of this, all he knows to do is spew right wing buzzwords from his face.

[kimbutgar]

11. I wonder how much bribe money he got deposited into his offshore account from the coal industry barons ?

Everything is transactional to him. I wish someone would find out about these kickbacks and bribes he receives!

[LymphocyteLover]

13. don't forgot he got like $1 billion from the oil indiustry during the election

[LymphocyteLover]

12. this is so dumb and really disgusting given how polluting coal is.

Goddamn, this moron in chief continues to suck massively every day

[70sEraVet]

14. There is nothing clean nor beaitiful about coal.

The chimneys can get fitted with scrubbers, so that the smoke that is emitted looks white instead of black -- but that does not mean that it's clean. Nor does it mean that it's harmless.
So now we intend to expose military personnel, their spouses and children, and civilians to unnecessary levels of polutants, and in return ..... trump gets a new award from some 'coal club'!

[Wonder Why]

16. Hey Stupid! Why don't you bring back the WW1 coal-burning battleships? Fat Pig strikes again!

[jmowreader]

17. The first problem with this ridiculous idea...

...is that a lot of military bases aren't in the catchment areas of power companies that still have coal plants.

Quick example: Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA, buys power from Tacoma Public Utilities. That company makes almost all its electricity through hydropower - no coal at all.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

19. MaddowBlog-Coal industry latest to reward Trump with an unnecessary, made-up award

Let this be a lesson to those hoping to curry favor with the White House: If you haven’t visited a store that makes trophies, you’re making a mistake.

Link to tweet

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/coal-industry-latest-to-reward-trump-with-an-unnecessary-made-up-award

Republican Party orthodoxy on government subsidies for private industry tends to be straightforward: Industries should rise and fall based on market forces, not politicians picking winners and losers. It’s the same GOP philosophy that says that if a private industry, especially one that’s been around for a while, needs the government to give it taxpayer money, that looks less like capitalism and more like socialism.

Donald Trump, however, makes occasional exception to these rules. The New York Times reported:

President Trump on Wednesday directed the Pentagon to start buying more electricity from coal-burning power plants as part of his efforts to revive the declining coal industry.

Mr. Trump signed an executive order directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to enter into long-term contracts with coal plants across the country to power military installations. The move could provide financial support to dozens of coal plants that might have otherwise been set to retire in the coming years.

“We’re going to be buying a lot of coal through the military now,” the Republican said at a White House event. “We’re lifting up our hardworking American miners like nobody has ever done before.”....

There was one element of the White House event, however, that stood out.

"Sir, to show our appreciation, the trophy says 'the undisputed champion of beautiful, clean coal'"

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2026-02-11T21:56:52.736Z

.....This has been going on for a while now. Shortly after Trump left office in 2021, following his defeat in the 2020 election, the National Republican Senatorial Committee made up an honor for him called the Champion for Freedom Award.

More recently, after the president’s begging didn’t lead to a Nobel Peace Prize, FIFA, soccer’s global governing body, concocted its own peace prize in the hopes of making Trump feel better.

Let this be a lesson to those hoping to curry favor with the White House: If you haven’t already visited a store that makes trophies, you’re making a mistake.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

20. This made me smile