(RightWing.org) – White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, like her predecessor Jen Psaki, must have put dozens of pairs of shoes on their expense accounts when one considers the number of times they have had to walk back a statement made by President Joe Biden. Critics are now accusing the administration of launching an attack against coal-fired electric plants after “clarifications” were made regarding a statement from November 2022 by the president that was perceived by many as a promise to close them all down.
Proposed Rule
A March 8 press release from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said, “the Biden-Harris Administration announced it is proposing to strengthen wastewater discharge standards that apply to coal-fired power plants.” They claim the Clean Water Act gives them the authority to implement policies to reduce the levels of pollution, including some toxic metals, that are sent into drinking water as a byproduct of producing electricity. Critics warn that the penalties associated with this rule could bankrupt some companies, causing them to shut their doors.
Between the press release from the EPA on the matter and discussions in the Left-leaning mainstream media, they have managed to cover two of the main Liberal talking points in support of the plan. It will help “communities of color,” they assert are more likely to be impacted by the pollution, and it undoes some of the plans the bogeyman of their nightmares, former President Donald Trump, had put in place.
The Flip-Flop
In a November 4 speech, Biden proclaimed that “we’re going to be shutting [coal-fired] plants down all across America and having wind and solar.” The backlash was swift, including from Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Jean-Pierre was forced to put a little more wear and tear on her shoe leather.
The following Monday (November 7), during a press conference, Jean-Pierre made sure to play up Biden’s family history with the coal mines since they hailed from Scranton, Pennsylvania, extolling his respect for the men and women who work in the industry. She made the claim that the president’s words had been “twisted,” using that word at least half a dozen times, and when asked how it was possible to twist his words, she simply refused to answer and moved to the next reporter.
This flip-flop attack on the coal industry by Biden is not the only time he had done something similar, unfortunately. In an April 19, 2022, opinion piece, Fox News personality Liz Peek, pointed to his conflicting signals on gas and oil drilling, the rampant inflation in America, and his plan to undo the Title 42 health emergency put in place by Trump to slow down immigration. More recently, his waffling on a perceived soft-on-crime legislation passed by the Washington, DC, city council has come under scrutiny.
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