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Can government really be more efficient?
Finding ways to run government more efficiently is all the rage these days. President-elect Donald Trump has charged Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy with cutting federal spending. The pair said in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, “Unlike government commissions or advisory committees, we won’t just write reports or cut ribbons. We’ll cut costs.”
Why Wren Baker had to fire Neal Brown
The 2019 hiring of Neal Brown as WVU’s head football coach should have worked. Brown was one of the hot names when WVU launched its search following the departure of Dana Holgorsen. His success at Troy had him on coaching search short lists. Hiring him was the right decision. Brown was a perfect fit. WVU
(Editor’s note: I have posted this commentary previously during the Thanksgiving holiday.) Thanksgiving is deeply rooted in American tradition, beginning with the European settlers. It was first formalized in 1789, when President George Washington issued a proclamation for “a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many
The state Public Employee Insurance Agency (PEIA) has wrapped up a series of meetings across the state to gather input from plan participants about proposed increases. Now it is up to the finance board to make a final recommendation to the legislature. Under the plan, public employees face premium increases of 14 percent for the
Drug overdose deaths are finally declining
Drug overdose deaths are starting to trend downward in West Virginia and across the country. That is encouraging news, especially in West Virginia which had consistently led the nation in overdose deaths per capita. Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports a 14.5 percent decline in overdose deaths from June 2023 through June
(I posted this commentary last year on the anniversary of Kennedy’s assassination.) For West Virginians old enough to remember, today is a tragic anniversary. It was on this day, November 22, 1963, that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. Kennedy is more closely associated with West Virginia than any other President because of
WV Supreme Court finds there was no penalty on the playoffs
The first round of the West Virginia high school football playoffs will be played this Friday and Saturday after being postponed for a week due to a court fight. The path for finally playing the games was cleared following a State Supreme Court decision released Tuesday. The court ruled in favor of the West Virginia
Jim Justice on Trump nominees: “I’ll support all the choices.”
None of President-elect Donald Trump’s appointees will face opposition from West Virginia’s newest U.S. Senator. Republican Governor Jim Justice, who won election to the Senate earlier this month, said during a media briefing Tuesday, “Absolutely I am supportive of his choices because I’ve got that level of faith in him. I’ll support all the choices.”
Shifting attitudes on the death penalty
A new poll finds that younger people are less likely to favor the death penalty than older Americans. The Gallup poll found that “less than half of U.S. adults born after 1980—those in the Millennial and Generation Z birth cohorts—favor the death penalty. At the same time, roughly six in ten adults in older generations
Fifty-six years ago, Wednesday, massive explosions and fires engulfed Consolidation Coal Company’s Farmington #9 mine in Marion County. The West Virginia Encyclopedia described the scene this way: “A large cloud of black smoke and red flames spewed from the pit opening, rock and debris were catapulted from the mine.” Twenty-one miners escaped, but another 78
Siding with Donald Trump has obvious political advantages. His sweeping victory in the election helped carry Republicans to a majority in the Senate and preserved their majority in the House of Representatives. In West Virginia, Trump received 70 percent of the vote, and that contributed to down ballot success for every other Republican in state
The private sector should take over WV state hospitals
West Virginia state government must get out of the hospital business, and the sooner the better. Currently, the state owns and operates four long-term care facilities, two psychiatric hospitals and a community hospital in Welch. A recent audit conducted by the Post Audit Division of the state legislature revealed a major issue with the facilities—hiring
The Trump/Justice West Virginia election
Some final thoughts about the election in West Virginia: Donald Trump endorsed Jim Justice in the U.S. Senate race in West Virginia and Justice supported Donald Trump. Unofficial results from the 2024 General Election show the two candidates had remarkably similar results in West Virginia. Statewide, Trump received 70 percent of the vote, while Justice
Capito moves up the leadership ladder
Senator Shelley Moore Capito is in line to ascend to the fourth most powerful position on the Senate GOP leadership team when elections are held Wednesday. Capito is unopposed, so unless something unexpected happens, the West Virginian will be the next chair of the Republican Policy Committee. “I’m very excited about being in this leadership
(This is a commentary I have posted previously on Veterans Day.) One-hundred and six years ago, at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the fighting stopped along the battle lines in Europe, bringing an end to the hostilities of World War I. The following year, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November
State Auditor confirms investigation into Berkeley County Sheriff’s Tax Office
Officials are being cautious and cryptic about an ongoing investigation involving the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Tax Office. Sheriff Rob Blair released a statement this week confirming the investigation but providing only vague details. “The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office continues to support and resource these investigative efforts,” Blair said in a prepared statement. “I most recently
West Virginia’s Republican domination
The red political wave washing over West Virginia just gets bigger. The outcomes of most of the state races in Tuesday’s election were predictable, but the magnitude of the wins by the GOP is what gets your attention. (See full results here.) Republican Senate candidate, Governor Jim Justice, and Republican Gubernatorial candidate, Attorney General Patrick
In 1789, electors chosen by ten states cast ballots and elected George Washington as our first President of the United States. America’s first election would not fit the modern definition of a democracy or a constitutional republic, but it was a good start. At the time, the rest of the world was made up of
New Governor Will Face Budget Challenges
We will know Tuesday night who will be the next governor of West Virginia. The winner will celebrate the victory, and probably take a few days off from a long campaign. However, the governor-elect will have to get to work quickly on an emerging issue with the state’s finances. A report released Friday by the
West Virginia: blue geysers and red waves
If the past is prologue, the election map in West Virginia will look almost entirely red with just a few spots of blue after all the votes are counted from Tuesday’s election. West Virginia has turned heavily Republican over the last 25 years, and the GOP now dominates local and statewide races. Forty six of
