Not surprisingly, Fox News was too busy finding reasons to attack President Obama’s Clean Power Plan to fact check whether its attacks were true.
Obama's plan cuts power plant emissions 32%, by 2030, compared to 2005 levels.
Fox's Charles Krauthammer lied about the plan's effects. He said, "Look, we all know it's going to kill jobs. We know it's going to kill coal. And we know it's going to raise the rates for everybody. The only reason you’d support this is if it actually is going to do something about climate change. If you do the math on this, our power plants emit 5% of the world's carbon. This is going to reduce it by a third. We're talking about 1 ½% reduction in the world's production of carbon over 15 years. That's one tenth of one percent every year, meaning one in one thousandth. It will have zero effect on the climate."
Fox's Steve Hayes agreed. "I think Charles is right," he said. "Even proponents of this will agree that it's going to significantly boost energy costs. And President Obama said that when he first proposed cap and trade. He said it was going to cause energy costs to skyrocket. What will be most interesting to me to see is how many Democrats embrace this, Democrats in the House. They don't have to do anything, but Democrats in the House and Senate if they rhetorically embrace this as Hillary Clinton has, I think it’s trouble for them down the road."
Hayes continued, "If this actually survives the legal challenges, you’re talking about costs that people will see. It's like gas prices rising at the pump. People will feel this. It will have an effect not only on the economy broadly but also on individual pocketbooks. And Democrats, if they embrace it, I think will have to answer for that."
But while consumers may experience a small electricity bill increase (2.4-2.7%) in the short term, the EPA and several independent analyses agree that when the plan is fully implemented, in 2030, prices will decrease by more than double the short-term increase.
Watch the spin below, from the August 3 Special Report.