Obama's climate change plan faces legal test

• A federal appeals court begins hearing arguments today in two cases challenging the EPA’s far-reaching proposal to cut pollution from U.S. coal-fired power plants.
• The lawsuits - one from a coalition of 15 states and another brought by privately held coal miner Murray Energy - are part of a growing pushback from opponents who say the move is illegal and will kill jobs, hurt demand for coal and drive up electricity prices.
• The EPA rule proposed last year requires states to cut carbon emissions by 30% by 2030, giving customized targets to each state and leaving it up to them to draw up plans to meet the targets.
• Coal industry arguments will be helped by an unlikely ally: iconic liberal law professor Laurence Tribe, who is representing Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU) and likens Pres. Obama's climate change policies to "burning the Constitution."
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