The Clintons' Coal-Gate (Massive US Reserves Of "Clean-Coal" Removed From Market)

NVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY ^ | January 23, 2008 | staff

[icwhatudo]

-snip-

In fact, the declaration of 1.7 million Utah acres as a national monument, thereby depriving an energy-starved U.S. up to 62 billion tons of environmentally safe low-sulfur coal worth $1.2 trillion and minable with minimal surface impact, was a political payoff to the family of James Riady.

He's the son of Lippo Group owner Mochtar Riady. James was found guilty of — and paid a multimillion dollar fine for — funneling more than $1 million in illegal political contributions through Lippo Bank into various American political campaigns, including Bill Clinton's presidential run in 1992.

Clinton took off the world market the largest known deposit of clean-burning coal. And who owned and controlled the second-largest deposit in the world of this clean coal? The Indonesian Lippo Group of James Riady.

[untrained skeptic]

I have some friends that have visited Canyonlands National Park a number of times a love the place.

The National Parks in Southern Utah get quite a bit of visitation so there's obviously a lot of people that disagree with you that there is no need to preserve such areas.

If we try and insist there is nothing there worth preserving, we will lose this fight.

We need to convince people that we can extract the coal with minimal impact and still preserve the natural beauty of the area, which can be done.

We can't get all the coal in that way, but there is a huge amount of coal there. We can't let out opponents get away with saying because all the coal can't be extracted without significantly damaging the area, none of the coal should be extracted.

[Homer1]

I agree. Bush is a political coward and a FAIL for not reversing so many of clinton’s bungles.

[epow]

Someone tell me why nothing was done to remedy this?

Someone tell me where in the Constitution a president is granted the power to declare 1.7 million acres of a state off limits to commercial development. I don't have a copy of the Constitution here at my desk, but IIRC that is not a designated power of the executive branch.

[Ziva]

Ah, it was my online research on this very issue in January 1998 that brought me to FR. I joined immediately once I realized what a valuable resource it was.

[thackney]

Coal Mining vs. Wilderness on the Kaiparowits Plateau
http://cpluhna.nau.edu/Places/gsenm3.htm

According to the USGS, 62 billion tons of coal are contained under the surface of the plateau—the largest deposit of compliance coal in the United States.

[epow]

But when he and the republicans held the Presidency and both houses of congress for years they spent their time taking care of their fat cat friends and pandering to illegals and minorities instead of doing what is best for the country.

While I agree with most of that quoted portion of your post I disagree with the reference to minorities. If not for the Democrats "pandering to minorities" Truman would have been the last Democrat president. The great irony of that is that most of the much needed reforms that benefited that minority came through the efforts of Republicans, and virtually all of those reforms were opposed by Democrats.

I'm certainly not saying that all, or even most, Repub presidents have been good presidents, but for two possible exceptions I can't think of a Repub president or nominee for that office since WWII who was not better qualified either by experience or character, or both, than his Democrat opponent.

One problem with BOTH parties is that in many cases the most capable and best qualified candidates have been weeded out in the primaries and the less capable and qualified ones have been nominated. If the GOP was composed primarily of conservative voters as many FR posters seem to think that it is, that would not have been the case in at least one major party.

[thulldud]

But when he and the republicans held the Presidency and both houses of congress for years they spent their time taking care of their fat cat friends and pandering to illegals and minorities instead of doing what is best for the country.

It's been said that if voting really could make a difference, it would be illegal.

[danamco]

We just need a President with the cojones to do it and withstand the inevitable screams and lawsuits of the environmentalists.

No cojones here, but "lipstick," a perfect case-load for Sarahcuda!!!

[backhoe]

"This article was from earlier this year and is a good reminder of one of the many clinton scandals that newer Freepers may not be fully aware of."

Well I was aware of it. This happened late in the Clinton presidency and it was widely anticipated that George Bush would reverse the Clinton effort to help his foreign friends by taking a large chunk of American clean coal off the market. Didn't happen. So who do we blame? Not Clinton. Blame George Bush. This is not a troll. I will gladly eat crow if someone can explain Bush's failure to reverse the Clinton order.

President Bush has been a profound disappointment to me, especially in the latter stages of this administration, and I say that as a formerly fairly enthusiastic booster for him.

I covered the subject, years ago here:

-That Trillion-Dollar Ripoff-- Clinton's Utah Coal Deal--