For nearly 20 years, the U.S. has been closing its coal mines. Coal became too expensive, and gas, solar, and wind power are cheaper and more efficient options. Now, the Trump administration is spending roughly $700 million to revive the coal market, using a 1950 wartime law. 

The people behind this shift are often the ones who say the market should dictatee decisions and the government should stay out of it. They argue the shift is practical, citing rising power demand from AI data centers and the need for reliable electricity.

Naomi Oreskes, a historian of science at Harvard and author of “The Big Myth,” believes other factors are at play. “I think the important point to make here is that there is no rational economic, social, or environmental argument for sustaining coal as a primary fuel, and certainly not for reopening closed coal plants,” she said. 

Oreskes joined host Robyn Vincent on The Metro to talk about the Trump administration’s move to revive the coal industry and how politics and power factor into what we believe is practical — or possible. 

Hear the full conversation using the media player above.

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House Republicans want to eliminate Michigan’s clean energy law requiring 100% renewable power by 2040.

A second bill would also limit distributed energy sources, such as rooftop solar, to just 1% of a utility’s total energy sales. Democrats say that amounts to a ban on community solar programs like Ann Arbor’s Solarize, where neighbors group together to buy solar panels at bulk discounts.

Ann Arbor solar installations jumped from 17 per year to 180 after the Solarize program launched. The 1% cap could hurt that growth.

Republican Rep. Pauline Wendzel says her bill puts “reliability and affordability first.” 

On the other side of the aisle, Democratic Rep. Tonya Myers Phillips points to utilities and their frequent rate increases as the problem behind high energy bills.

Reporter Kyle Davidson from Michigan Advance joined Robyn Vincent on The Metro to discuss the battle over energy costs.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro