President Donald Trump received the title of “Undisputed Champion of Beautiful, Clean Coal” from industry leaders at a White House event on Wednesday, where he inked an executive order mandating that the Department of War secure long-term coal-powered energy deals for military sites and critical operations.
The directive aims to bolster the faltering coal sector, honoring Trump’s vows to aid miners and regions hit by plant shutdowns as utilities favor natural gas and renewables.
“We’re going to be buying a lot of coal through the military now,” Trump declared, The Guardian reported. “Under our leadership, we’re becoming a massive energy exporter. We’re lifting up our hard-working American miners like nobody has ever done before.”
The Washington Coal Club presented Trump with a bronze trophy depicting a miner, handed over by Peabody Energy CEO James Grech, the head of the top U.S. coal firm. The ceremony drew miners, executives, GOP legislators, and officials, including EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
“We stand here today representing the thousands of coal miners across the country to express our deep gratitude, sir, for the actions you’ve taken to support our industry,” Grech said, praising Trump’s grasp of coal’s national role.
Miner Kayla Blackford thanked Trump, noting: “We are real people under these hard hats.”
West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey hailed it as a “major win for West Virginia workers” and a pivot to “common-sense energy policy that values reliability, affordability, and American jobs.”
Trump disclosed the Tennessee Valley Authority’s reversal on retiring coal units at two plants. The Energy Department will spend $175 million to upgrade six coal facilities in rural West Virginia, Ohio, North Carolina, and Kentucky, including three in West Virginia.
Zeldin credited Trump with saving the “clean, beautiful coal industry that has kept our nation’s families warm and safe during recent weeks of freezing cold.”