After a Crushing Loss in Massachusetts, Will Mollohan Fold on Healthcare?

Washington- A win for Massachusetts Republican Scott Brown in the country’s bluest state is sending shivers down Democrats’ spines. Brown’s defeat of Democrat Martha Coakley is a clear reflection of the public’s dissatisfaction with the Democrats’ sweeping government healthcare takeover, proving that the Obama-Pelosi agenda is exceedingly unpopular even in the state once represented by Ted Kennedy. This result should serve as a stark warning for Alan Mollohan and other Democrat lap dogs that have supported Nancy Pelosi’s government-run healthcare overhaul: Your seat is no longer safe.

"’Even in liberal Massachusetts, most voters are opposed to it,’ said Tom Jensen, director of Public Policy Polling, a Democratic pollster in Raleigh, N.C., who has conducted polls in that state and others on health care. "If it's not popular in Massachusetts, it's really not popular anywhere." (Janet Adamy & Naftali Bendavid, “Massachusetts Race Now Key to Health Bill,” Wall Street Journal, 1/18/2010)

“He said Democrats have learned a crucial lesson: that even in very blue states, Democrats should expect a ‘volatile’ environment with a ‘tough’ electorate — and ‘you can’t afford not to be aggressive.’” (Manu Raju, Jonathan Martin and John Bresnahan, “Finger-pointing begins for Democratic insiders,” Politico, 1/19/2010)

“’My message to my clients? Jump ship now,’ said one Democratic operative who advises a number of targeted Members of Congress. ‘Obama can't help you.’” (Chris Cillizza, “Scott Brown wins Massachusetts Senate special election race,” Washington Post, 1/20/2010)

Over the past few months, polling has consistently shown that support for Democrats and their healthcare overhaul is sagging.

“The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that just 38% of voters nationwide favor the health care reform plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats. That matches the lowest level of support yet. Fifty-six percent (56%) of voters oppose the plan.” (“Health Care Reform” Rasmussen Reports, 1/18/2010)

The polling so far for red district Democrats has been uniformly atrocious… If you look at the RCP average, you see a sea of red markings showing Republicans leading the generic ballot test. It isn’t just Rasmussen Reports: CNN, Battleground, Bloomberg, and Gallup have all measured the GOP ahead in the generic ballot in the past few months.” (Sean Trende, “The House Is Very Much In Play,” Real Clear Politics, 1/19/2010)

Despite the writing on the wall, Pelosi remains adamant on pushing her reckless healthcare bill through Congress.

‘’Let’s remove all doubt,’ she added. ‘We will have health care one way or another.’” (Domenico Montanaro, “Congress: A speedy vote?,” MSNBC, 1/19/2009)

“With the cards stacked against him, Alan Mollohan's re-election campaign is going to make the Massachusetts special election look like a walk in the park,” said NRCC Communications Director Ken Spain. “After serving as a consummate lap dog for Nancy Pelosi and her reckless healthcare bill, Mollohan has put himself in political jeopardy. The Democrats’ big-government, big-spending policies cost them a Senate seat in Massachusetts, now the question is: Will it cost Mollohan his own?”

With his job on the line, will Alan Mollohan fold on healthcare or will he continue to push himself out of office by being the lap dog West Virginia families know him to be?

Scott Brown: the Latest Name to Keep Democrats Awake A Nights

Who woulda thunk it? The seat christened by Democrats as "Ted Kennedy's" as if by feudal right may fall to the Republican Scott Brown today.

Kennedy in his last few years dedicated himself to getting a socialist or semi-socialist health care system passed in the United States. He already achieved his goal of promoting endlessly expanding federal intervention into the educational system (much to the ire of almost every teacher.) Democrats sought to make his death a catalyst for their ideas passing into law.

The most liberal state in the Union may be about to say no. Brown ran a strictly conservative campaign squarely against federal level health care deform. Massachusetts already has their own system, thank you very much. Why should they pay again for people in other states? Good question! Why should they saddle themselves with billions of dollars more in costs that the federal government will provide zero help to cover? Obama talks about savings(that do not exist), but declines to mention that state taxpayers will pick up much of the tab left unpaid by federal taxes. Brown proves that the plan has failed to even get support among the most liberal electorate in America.

If Brown wins, Democrats will try to circumvent Senate rules and push their deformed monstrosity through anyway. They know that this issue has tarnished their brand and made a mockery of all their claims to support transparent government. Even if Brown loses, it demonstrates that conservative momentum is still picking up and that Democrats not willing to commit political hari-kari over this issue have just cause for concern next November. Alan Mollohan, perhaps to the consternation of Democrats at this point, has decided to file for re-election. Republicans in the first district, contrary to usual political convention, would probably have a more difficult time against a more conservative Democratic newcomer than an established Obama/Pelosi supporter. Against Mollohan they can fire away at associations between him and the extremely unpopular speaker for months and gain tremendous support.

This month it comes back to Scott Brown. We hope that the Massachusetts voters can step up and demand the kind of change that favors voters and their interests, not taxing and giving away. They rebelled against unfair taxation once before and started a nationwide revolution. They can do it again today.

Some Items Left Out of Kennedy-Fest

Last week we saw endless praises and near canonizations heaped upon Senator Ted Kennedy. Someone, somewhere called him the "Lion of the Senate" and others compared him to Henry Clay and Daniel Webster as one of the greatest ever. Of course no Democratic funeral would be complete without utilizing it for political gain. The Kennedy family brought forth children to try and convince the nation to pass socialized health care that the man himself would never have used himself.


You would never, however, go through a Richard Nixon death without mention of Watergate. Kennedy's misdeeds similarly ought to follow praises of whatever it is he did that was great.


Most remember the death of Mary Jo Kopechne. Nothing to say about this that readers of thise site do not know already.


What many people are not aware of is how damaging Ted Kennedy was to this state. In 1960 the future Senator took charge of John F. Kennedy's effort to win Southern West Virginia. The region already had an unsavory reputation for corruption. Most county bosses lined up behind Midwestern traditional liberal Hubert Humphries. At this point their influence, especially that of Raymond Chafin of Logan County, was very strong.


Chris Matthews said recently that John F. Kennedy's good looks won him the 1960 primary in West Virginia. In contrast to this rather insulting and condescending assertion, West Virginians themselves have tried to relate the real story of the 1960 primary. Two books in the past few years, West Virginia Tough Boys, by F. Keith Davis and Don't Buy Another Vote I Won't Pay For a Landslide, by former Gaston Caperton Administration official Dr. Allen Loughry, discussed in detail the drama that unfolded in that primary season. Basically what it boils down to is that the Kennedy campaign pumped tens of thousands of dollars into the hands of county bosses. This caused them to switch allegiances overnight to Kennedy and to use some of the funds to line up precincts for their new candidate.


Dr. Loughry also argues that the massive amount of funds injected into the hands of the bosses and by extension many corrupted voters raised the bar for voting irregularities. In essence, to purchase a West Virginia election, a candidate would need more cash than ever. This tied some more tightly to unsavory donors while making for others personal wealth and the willingness to use it in illegal ways more tempting than ever. Obvious fraud and corruption benefitted the status quo since voters reacted by growing ever more cynical. When you have a mindset that all politicians are crooks, you tend to adopt "the devil you know is better than the devil you don't" mentality.


And who should answer for this? Ted Kennedy's death removed a man who likely knew a lot, but never uttered a word about that scandalous year of 1960.

Senator Edward M. Kennedy dies at 77

GOP Fundraising Outpaces Democrats in 2009 and Ted Kennedy's Mockery of West Virginia

Sunday, the Cumberland Times-News ran an Associated Press story coming out of West Virginia. The title claimed that the Democratic Party had raised more money than state Republicans, no shock there. It also spotlighted many of the factional divisions plaguing the party this year.

It included a curious nugget of information. Per voter, the West Virginia Republican Party took in over twice as much money as the Democrats. When one breaks down the fund raising, the WVGOP took in almost twenty-five cents per registered Republican voter while the Democrats only took in about ten cents per registered Democrat.

Now this is not yet cause to pop open the champagne, bang on the piano, and sing and dance. Happy days are still not here again. However, this must be recognized as progress. One more step forward in a long journey. Not too long ago a huge debt hung over the head of the party. In 2009 the fund raising numbers have accomplished this even in the middle of a recession and continuing intraparty strife. It shows a Republican base that is still smaller than the Ruling Party, but much more mobilized. The WVGOP has taken some advantage of the national political turn against Obama, Reid, Pelosi, and the lefties.

Life provides few magic bullets. Like a coach taking hold of a college football team accustomed to years of losing records, it takes time to construct a program. We have seen strong progress over the last few years as the WVGOP got its house in order. Now it is prepared to build upon a stronger foundation and get back to the priority of electing Republicans to office.

Many kudos to those that have been directly involved in West Virginia Republican fund raising. Stay innovative and keep up the good work. We'll have West Virginia seeing red if we keep at it.

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I don't think anyone should be surprised at this. Ted Kennedy, the all wise moral compass of the liberals, was recorded at least once ridiculing West Virginia. Theodore White in his Making of the President 1968 recalled how at a party full of liberals at Robert Kennedy's house, the moral compass himself indulged in some insulting mimicry of the Southern West Virginia political bosses who enabled his brother to seize the primary in 1960.

We should have learned the lesson a long time ago, through this, through Bill Clinton aides tossing the phrase "trailer trash" around at Paula Jones, that elite liberals in Washington tend to see people like us as sources of votes and ridicule and not much else.

No Title of Nobility Shall be Granted

231 years ago the 13 British colonies declared independence, in the Declaration of Independence, they clearly stated, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Five statesmen from Massachusetts signed that document; John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine and Elbridge Gerry.

March 4, 2009 British Prime Minster, Gordon Brown stood before a joint session of the US Congress and stated, “I want to announce that Her Majesty The Queen, has awarded an honorary Knighthood for Sir Edward Kennedy.” Now our founding fathers knew that titles of nobility inferred inequality of men. They promptly outlawed titles of nobility in the Articles of Confederation to insure the equality of men.

When considering the new constitution the Founding Fathers had very strong convictions. The outlawing of nobility titles was so important that James Madison had this to say about including that prevision in the new constitution, “The prohibition with respect to titles of nobility is copied from the articles of Confederation and needs no comment.” - January 25th, 1788, Federalist Papers #44

Alexander Hamilton ranked the banishment of nobility titles at the top, he even used all capital letters for emphases when he wrote, “The establishment of the writ of habeas corpus, the prohibition of ex-post-facto laws, and of TITLES OF NOBILITY, TO WHICH WE HAVE NO CORRESPONDING PROVISION IN OUR CONSTITUTION, are perhaps greater securities to liberty and republicanism than any it contains” He went on to say, “Nothing need be said to illustrate the importance of the prohibition of titles of nobility. This may truly be denominated the corner-stone of republican government; for so long as they are excluded, there can never be serious danger that the government will be any other than that of the people.” Alexander Hamilton, Federalist Papers #84

As we know from history the pleas fell on receptive ears, because the banishment of titles of nobility made it into the US Constitution under Article 1, Section 9, “No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.”

Today Senator Ted Kennedy and the US Congress have to make a decision. Are they statesmen or politicians? I think we can guess what the first Massachusetts Senators Caleb Strong and Tristram Dalton would recommend. Senator Kennedy should politely say, “No, thank you,” sighting the US Constitution. While Senator Kennedy has a long and distinguished career he is our equal nothing more. Congress should grant no exception and if Senator Kennedy wishes to accept, then he should resign from his office and renounce his US citizenship, just as the founding fathers renounced their British citizenship in order to form a nation of equals.

Saint Ted?

The Democratic National Convention kicked off with a Ted Kennedy love fest that would make one gag. On one hand, the specter of any human being suffering from cancer is worth sympathy. However, the hero/saint treatment is appalling.

The nation knows about Chappaquiddick, when Kennedy's young female friend died on his watch. He saturated his brain in alcohol, drove off a bridge with a young woman in the car. When he miraculously escaped, he neither tried to help his friend, nor did he call the authorities. Instead he changed his clothes and went to a party while some parents' daughter lay dead under water.

Few people outside of West Virginia know of the felonies committed in our state on his watch. Ted Kennedy supervised his brother's 1960 presidential primary campaign in Southern West Virginia. In separate accounts, political boss Raymond Chafin and Caperton administration official Dr. Allen Loughry wrote about the massive sums of cash sent from "bagmen" in Chicago to bosses in Southern West Virginia. Upon receiving the money the bosses changed their support from Hubert Humphreys to John F. Kennedy. They then used the cash to convince voters to support the new favorite. Ted Kennedy deserved federal prison, not the United States Senate.

Yet this is their patriarch, their saint. Saint Ted was on hand to give his approval to the next generation of crooked politician with questionable Chicago ties. At least the Kennedy ties were with a mob that supported their country in times of war (FDR let J. Edgar Hoover use the Mafia for port security.) Obama's friends such as William Ayers wanted to kill American lawmakers and police officers. Ties to the mob and the Chicago machine are bad. Ties to terrorists should rule out anyone from elected office. Sadly the Democratic Party overlooks such trivial relationships, thinking a Cheshire cat grin and vague calls of unity will mask the reality of Obama's past.

Shortages and Price Rises

The Moorefield Examiner ran a poll yesterday asking how the US government should stabilize gas prices. 30% responded that the answer lay in increasing supply by drilling into known reserves including public lands. 11% suggested that current market forces ought to be left alone. However 53% suggested that the oil companies be overwhelmingly taxed to seize their profits.

The price of oil and gas rises because of shortages in supply. Gas companies (and this is true for food as well) must raise prices substantially in times of short supply. Price rises actually represent the lesser evil when compared to a complete cut off of product to the market. Seizing profits won't help because these companies do not stick their money into a sock and hide it. Most of them reinvest profits into production and research, looking for new sources of energy or making production more efficient. Putting legal caps on gas or food prices will not reduce demand and we would run low on or run out of gas and perhaps some kinds of food as well. President Bush's recent veto of a bill that would put caps on food prices showed real leadership.

Does it make anyone happy to pay $4 a gallon for gas? Nope. The key for the United States whether it comes to food or fuel is to assume leadership and increase supply. We can do both since we have vast untapped reserves of oil and we pay farmers to not farm. Flooding the market with US oil and food will drop prices substantially, but it will take congressional action to make this happen. We must remember this in the coming election.

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Kudos to Lisa Peana and the West Virginia Republican Club's blog for predicting the primary day massacre of incumbent Democrats. My question is this, were these Democrats all very publicly associated with Joe Manchin? I wonder how many Democratic candidates and incumbents will be eager to get their pictures with the Gov in this go-round?

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Prayers for Senator Edward Kennedy and his family. No one except the most evil should have to suffer from the ravages of brain cancer. We may disagree with the Senator a lot, but we hope that God sees fit to enable him to make a full recovery.

Ted Kennedy to Introduce Legislation Condemning Italy

Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy's spokesperson announced this morning that he will introduce legislation condemning Italy for an act of genocide in its past.

In the mid 100s AD, the Roman Republic launched an aggressive war against the militarily vulnerable city-state of Carthage. Its armies marched into the city, destroyed every building, murdered every civilian, and even sowed salt into the surrounding fields so nothing would grow in them. Rome's brutality marked the largest single massacre of a civilian population until World War II. Neither the Roman Republic, nor its successor the Roman Empire, nor the current Republic of Italy have acknowledged or apologized for this act of brutality. Kennedy said that it is time to redress the wrongs of history. Italy can start with an apology to the current government of Tunisia, then negotiate reparations.

Obviously this is a sham article, but it is not too far off the mark from a real issue. Democrats in Congress have proposed a statement of condemnation against the current Republic of Turkey for atrocities committed by the Ottoman Empire. Turkey rightly refuses to apologize for the actions of another government. President Bush would rather Congress not antagonize one of our few real Muslim allies that is also a long standing democracy.

This becomes a slippery slope. In all honesty we would have to condemn the United Kingdom for their Boer War concentration camps, France for some of their colonial practices, and many others. Condemnations and apologies for historical events make little sense. The current generation does not own the guilt of acts committed before they were even born. Yes this counts Japan and Germany as well. Our sense of justice is supposed to be individual. People commit crimes and need punishment; nations are not culpable to the end of time just because their history has some stain.

The proposed resolution against Turkey is tantamount to forcing an individual to apologize for the crimes of their great-grandfather. There is no point to it, nor fairness in it.

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Add this to the file of "if they had a gun, they would have been fine." In Great Britain, a family was attacked and beaten because they put details of their son's 16th birthday party on YouTube. Over 100 uninvited guests showed up at the residence and demanded entry. They attacked the father and beat everyone else while stealing food and champagne.

A shotgun full of rock salt or wood splinters would have dispersed that mob right away. It would not even happen in West Virginia.

The Winds of Change?

In the early years of national independence Thomas Jefferson wrote a comprehensive survey of his state, the famous Notes on Virginia. When speaking of the western section of Virginia, Jefferson lists a number of resources such as coal. This book was published to advertise the strong character of the people and the variety of natural resources that the state had to offer. However, I doubt that Jefferson ever considered wind as a natural resource to cultivate.

Some environmentalists have told the public for years that tremendous potential exists in the power generation of wind farms. Others protest that wind farms harm the environment. Walter Cronkite and Ted Kennedy, no friends of coal or any other supplier of power, successfully prevented construction of wind farms off of Martha’s Vineyard for aesthetic reasons alone. Some argue that birds flying into the blades and shortening their lives provides a compelling reason to not construct these farms (don’t they also fly into cars, windows of buildings, and other immovable objects?)

Only one reason alone exists to build or to not build, long term viability. Can these energy sources become profitable in the long term without government support? Governor Manchin signed a bill into law recently that raises the property tax rate on wind farms from the salvage rate to the regular rate. Although this removes an incentive to construct these projects, it does give county governments a reason to try to attract them. Manchin also opened the door for wind farm operators to earn tax credits with local investment.

Will wind power displace coal as the source of energy that keeps the lights on? Not a chance. However it creates investment opportunities on land that otherwise may not be developed, helping the local tax base. It also creates a few good paying jobs while increasing West Virginia’s most profitable (legal) export, electric power. Strangely enough, the wind farm that operates now in Tucker County has proven to be a tourist attraction of sorts. You can actually see people, even in busses, stop to get their pictures taken beside the gigantic wind harnessing machines. It makes you wonder if the Dutch that built those windmills so long ago saw them as beautiful or interesting features on the landscape. If these farms can generate profits as well as power, they will create an innovative and environmentally friendly source of wealth for the state and its people.