If Only Trump Could Channel His Political Hero

In Jon Meacham’s best-selling book The Soul of America, the Pulitzer-prize winning author writes about President Andrew Jackson’s commitment to maintaining the union. Meacham points out Jackson’s considerable failings—he was a slave holder and oppressor of Native Americans—but writes that Jackson “believed in the union with all his heart.” And so, when South Carolina threatened

Justice’s Own Resort Ignores Safety Warnings With New Year’s Gala

On December 23, Governor Jim Justice pleaded with West Virginians to follow safety protocols during the holidays. “Listen to me: You’ve got to be super careful with your family right now.  Super careful. And, absolutely, as sad and as terrible as it may be, you may need to really not bring your family together, and,

Bring On The Murder Hornets

While searching for inspiration for an end-of-the-year commentary, I came across a piece by humorist Dave Barry.  He wrote: “We’re trying to think of something nice to say about 2020.  Okay, here goes: Nobody got killed by the murder hornets. As far as we know. That’s pretty much it.” It is therapeutic to try to

West Virginia’s Fast Start to Covid-19 Vaccinations

Monday, Governor Jim Justice announced, with appropriate pride, that by the end of the day the first round of Covid-19 vaccinations at the state’s nursing homes would be completed. That means shots-in-arms of residents and staff at approximately 200 long-term care facilities, all done in two weeks and over the Christmas holiday. That is truly

Changes Do Not Answer All Questions About Clarksburg VA Hospital Murders

The rule of thumb in public relations is, if you have bad news, release the information on Friday afternoon.  If you have really bad news, release it just before a holiday weekend. That must have been what the United States Veterans Administration had in mind when, on Christmas Eve last week, it revealed changes at

Less ‘Pluribus’, More ‘Unum’

Our coverage of politics typically focuses on what politicians say they are going to do, the ongoing attempts at governing and never-ending opining of what one side says the other side is doing wrong, often with hostile language. I suspect that is why the retirement floor speech of Senator Lamar Alexander did not receive much

The Christmas Truce

(This is a commentary I post every Christmas Eve.  Merry Christmas everyone! HK)  Has there ever been a Christmas when there was no war, no fighting in any corner of our planet?   It’s difficult to imagine since the world’s history has been a series of conquests and defenses. But there was once a Christmas

While Trump Is In Denial, Republican Leaders Are Moving On

Senator Shelley Moore Capito was among the first congressional Republicans to publicly begin to accept the outcome of the presidential election. The West Virginia Republican issued a statement November 23 saying that while she was disappointed along with tens of thousands of her constituents who backed Trump, and while she supported ongoing legal challenges, the

Can WV Afford to Gamble on Frontier’s Broadband Bid?

West Virginia consistently ranks among the worst states for Internet coverage and speeds. For example, Broadband Now Research earlier this year put West Virginia at 44th. That is why the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) created optimism here and in other underserved states. The FCC is making available up to $20 billion

The Merits of ‘Doing the Best We Can’

My time off last week was a staycation, a practical and safe way to spend down time during the pandemic. I kept up with the news, but there were also opportunities to reconnect—phone calls, texts and emails with family and friends, opening Christmas cards and reading the annual updates from folks. Some common themes emerged

Taking a Break

Folks, I’m off this week. Stay safe and we’ll talk again soon. Hop

Morrisey Misfires by Joining Texas AG’s Attempt to Overturn Election

The Trump campaign is nearing the end of its options to try to overturn the results of the election, and now a legal Hail Mary has been launched. The long-shot attempt is an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to hear claims that the battleground states of Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin exploited the Covid-19

West Virginia Election Results Finalized—Big Turnout, Clean Election

West Virginia voters turned out in record numbers for the November General Election. Final figures released by Secretary of State Mac Warner’s office show there were 802,726 ballots cast. That is the second highest in the state’s history.  Only in the 1960 election did more West Virginians vote, when 837,782 votes were cast in the

The Right Stuff

The story goes that Chuck Yeager was not impressed with the term “the right stuff.” Author Tom Wolfe, in his book The Right Stuff, used the phrase to describe the qualities of Yeager and other pilots whose skill and bravery opened the avenue of supersonic flight and space exploration. Wolfe singled out Yeager in his

West Virginia’s Business Tax Ranking Better Than Most

The Tax Foundation has released its annual State Business Tax Climate Index, and it shows West Virginia firmly in the middle of the pack of states. The conservative-leaning think tank gives West Virginia an overall ranking of 22nd, with one being the best and 50 the worst. The Foundation rated states on property taxes, unemployment

Not Even Donald Trump Could Reverse Coal’s Decline

Donald Trump embraced coal during his 2016 campaign.  The crowd at a Charleston rally four years ago broke into wild applause when he told them, “I’m thinking about miners all over this country.  We’re gonna put the miners back to work. We’re gonna get those mines opened.” It has not worked out that way. In

The High Risk Along The Thin Blue Line

Tuesday afternoon, Charleston Police Department patrolman Officer Cassie Johnson responded to a parking complaint on Garrison Avenue. That sounds mundane.  Somebody is illegally parked.  There is a complaint. An officer shows up and asks the person to move their car, maybe issues them a ticket. How many times does that happen every day in Charleston,

Moderate Members of Congress Pitch Compromise Covid-19 Relief Bill

A funny thing happened in Washington this week. A bipartisan group of moderate United States Senators and members of the House of Representatives came together to endorse a compromise plan for another round of Covid-19 relief. Imagine that.  Democrats and Republicans, House and Senate members, agreeing on a “give-a-little/get-a-little” framework to help the country during

School Boards’ Rejection of Charter Application Riles Advocates

The Monongalia and Preston County Boards of Education this week rejected an application for what would have been the first charter school in West Virginia. The decisions have renewed the debate over charter schools, and motivated Republican lawmakers who want to expand charter school opportunities. The Legislature passed a comprehensive education reform bill in 2019

Altruism Needed to Fight Pandemic in WV

The pandemic is getting worse in West Virginia. The number of daily cases is rising more rapidly than any other time during the pandemic.  The total number of active positive cases reached 16,787 Sunday night, seventeen percent higher than a week ago. Hospitalizations are surging.   The latest DHHR figures show 597 Covid-19 patients in state