NASHVILLE, Tenn.- A negative campaign ad has been taking shots at Senator Lamar Alexander, accusing the long-time Republican statesman of engaging in a "war on coal".
The ad appeared on YouTube in June and accused Senator of supporting the EPA's limits on emissions, which the ad argues hurts jobs and causes utility prices to go up.
Senator Alexander said the ad is misleading. He says that Tennesseans already live by these emissions limits, due to the TVA's strict policies. Alexander went on to say that it hasn't caused rates to go up, nor has it cost any Tennesseans jobs.
In fact, the Senator said cleaner air helps Tennessee recruit businesses like Nissan and Volkswagen.
In the middle Tennessee area, the local mayors try to recruit industries. If they can't get air quality permits for those industries, they go to some other state and we lose the jobs. Coal plants put out mercury. The mercury gets into water and then into fish and it damages children. So for our health and our jobs in Tennessee we want cleaner air," said Alexander.
The ads were posted by American Commitment, which is run by the former vice president of Americans for Prosperity.
