Ahead of the 2016 presidential election, coal country came out in droves to support Donald Trump, who promised rural America a mining revival. Nine years later, some coal miners are saying they are in crisis because of the administration’s inaction on industry safety.
Miners on Tuesday are gathering outside the Labor Department building to protest the Trump administration’s move to indefinitely postpone the federal enforcement of a rule limiting exposure to carcinogenic silica dust particles. Miners argue increased subjection to the dust has led to an eruption of black lung, an incurable disease associated with inhaling the particles.
