About Obama's Promise To Bankrupt The Coal Industry...

Mike Carey, President of the Ohio Coal Association, has the following response to Obama's promise to bankrupt the entire coal industry and cause prices to 'skyrocket':

"Regardless of the timing or method of the release of these remarks, the message from the Democratic candidate for President could not be clearer: the Obama-Biden ticket spells disaster for America's coal industry and the tens of thousands of Americans who work in it.

"These undisputed, audio-taped remarks, which include comments from Senator Obama like 'I haven't been some coal booster' and 'if they want to build [coal plants], they can, but it will bankrupt them' are extraordinarily misguided.

"It's evident that this campaign has been pandering in states like Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana and Pennsylvania to attempt to generate votes from coal supporters, while keeping his true agenda hidden from the state's voters.

"Senator Obama has revealed himself to be nothing more than a short- sighted, inexperienced politician willing to say anything to get a vote. But today, the nation's coal industry and those who support it have a better understanding of his true mission, to 'bankrupt' our industry, put tens of thousands out of work and cause unprecedented increases in electricity prices.

"In addition to providing an affordable, reliable source of low-cost electricity, domestic coal holds the key to our nation's long-term energy security - a goal that cannot be overlooked during this time of international instability and economic uncertainty.

"Few policy areas are more important to our economic future than energy issues. As voters head to the polls tomorrow, it is essential they remember that access to reliable, affordable, domestic energy supplies is essential to economic growth and stability."

The Ohio Coal Association (OCA) is a non-profit trade association representing the interests of Ohio's underground and surface coal mining producers.

You know, call me crazy, but if this information gets out quickly and widely enough, it could kill Obama's already tenuous lead.  There are a LOT of coal industry folks in a number of key swing states, including Ohio and Pennsylvania.  Though this information only became public knowledge two days ahead of the election, we're talking about literally tens of thousands of jobs that Obama has essentially promised to eliminate (not to mention all the related industries that support the coal industry, nor any other energy-related industries).  That's a lot of people who could very suddenly become very worried about their livelihoods during an already turbulent time in our nation's economy.  Put a bunch of those people in key swing states, and put the major trade associations squarely in opposition, and the Obamessiah could have a major problem on his hands.

Let's hope so.

There's my two cents.