Someone’s internal polls aren’t looking very good
Joe Manchin Suddenly Decides to Sue the Obama Administration
So, in order to hold a Senate seat the Democrats have held for a half-century, the Democratic governor of West Virginia is suing the Democratic Administration in Washington, D.C.:
Gov. Joe Manchin has scheduled a press conference Wednesday morning where he is expected to announce that the state is filing suit against the federal government over the Obama administration’s crackdown on mountaintop removal coal mining.
Jim Geraghty (who alerted me to this story quips, “Suggested new slogan for John Raese: Keep Joe Manchin where he is to continue his legal fight against Obama!”
If this doesn’t work, he can join other governors in challenging the constitutionality of Obamacare.
UPDATE: Maybe he just saw this: “Rasmussen moves West Virginia race from ‘toss up’ to ‘leans GOP.‘”
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It’s interesting that Republicans are resurgent while doing exactly the opposite of what was prescribed for them in 2009 by the likes of David Frum, David Brooks, Kathleen Parker, and other members of the “party-in-exile.” The counsel of these sage moderates was to seek accommodation with Obama and the Democrats, and “show Americans they were reasonable people who can be trusted to govern.”
Instead, Republicans opposed Obama’s policies (while leaving it to others to articulate the reasons those policies should be opposed, unfortunately) and the strategy of opposing Obama is working so well… even Democrats are trying to emulate it; as Joe Manchin proves.
Comment by V the K — October 6, 2010 @ 12:05 pm - October 6, 2010
I’d bet if he’s re-elected, he drops the suit. I hope the good people of WV don’t fall for it.
Comment by ILoveCapitalism — October 6, 2010 @ 12:06 pm - October 6, 2010
The people know Manchin will be an Obamabot yes man; therefore, this is why he’s tanking. Manchin’s pandering will not help him. The people see through Manchin better than Manchin himself who seems to be in denial.
Comment by Sebastian Shaw — October 6, 2010 @ 12:07 pm - October 6, 2010
There’s a bigger structural problem here that is being overlooked. It would seem that West Virginia’s economy is supported by a single industry. That, in the long term is bad news for any state as it ties the fate of its economy to a single source of income. And what happens when that industry dies????
Ohio! Michigan!
Need I say more?
PS. The little that I know about mountain top removal, I’m not a big fan of it. It is messy, and does indeed cause long term down-stream problems with drinking water. The flip side though is that it is 1000 times safer for the miners than the traditional shaft type excavations.
Comment by Sonicfrog — October 6, 2010 @ 12:40 pm - October 6, 2010
Dan, it’s interesting how races that don’t follow the TP “revolt” chatter rarely attract attention these days.
Like here in Michigan’s gov race. We have a moderate, GOP businessman (Rick Snyder) running against a hardline, liberal Democrat of the old constituencies (Virg Bernero). Virg can’t get any ground even tho’ almost all political observers say the race should have tightened within 2-3 points by now.
We have a plethora of mainline GOP candidates running in all but 1 congressional district… we have open state house and senate seats peopled by candidates who have universally adopted the standard GOP positions on nearly every single issue… and even some Democrats who are trying to remake themselves into Independents and refuse to put a “D” on their mailers, yard signs or ads.
I can’t wait for 2012 and the opportunity for Michigan GOPers to take on Senator Debbie StupidCow in 2012 –it may be even more fun than off’ing Obama and the Chicago Crowd.
Comment by Michigan-Matt — October 6, 2010 @ 2:32 pm - October 6, 2010
Working class white voters are running to the GOP in droves. It’s really the Democrats who are the party of plutocrats these days.
Comment by V the K — October 6, 2010 @ 2:37 pm - October 6, 2010
Four of Obamas large policys are opposed by 60-70% of West Virginia voters. Sometimes the polling results are simple.
The leftist Dems are going to lose WV. Just like OH PA MI Governorships.
Comment by Gene in Pennsylvania — October 6, 2010 @ 3:28 pm - October 6, 2010
If there is one sure way to mobilize the Democratic base to vote, and to alienate independents fed up with partisanship and gridlock in Washington, it is to tell voters that if they vote Republican, there will more partisan warfare from House Republicans, more subpoenas, more gridlock. Do voters want a rerun of the Clinton impeachment?
Republicans are actually promising an abuse of power before they have power, if voters give them power!
Certainly Democrats have problems and will lose seats. But the 2010 election has tightened as voters have paid closer attention, and will tighten some more. America is an unhappy nation. America is not an extremist nation.
Every time a Republican predicts the GOP will win the Senate and 70 seats in the House, more Democrats become scared stiff and decide to vote, and more moderates worry about partisan gridlock and the arrogance of Republican power.
Comment by Proud Liberal — October 6, 2010 @ 4:32 pm - October 6, 2010
RIGHT ON Proud Porch Monkey! Here is the list:
1. Kill earmarks.
2. Force transparency.
3. Whack Czars and return to advise and consent and other quaint Constitutional processes.
4. Cut spending as a large part of the process of balancing the budget.
5. Fix unfunded and underfunded entitlements by reexamining priorities and realities.
6. Return the connection be rights and responsibility.
7. Trash can the myth that economic growth is the outcome of greater taxation and shrinking capitalism with more socialism.
8. Stop treating the people like they are lucky to even get an allowance and that all money belongs to the government.
9. Make millionaires walk treadmills to generate power to run flat screen TVs for the poor. (Fooled you. I used one of your priorities.)
Comment by Heliotrope — October 6, 2010 @ 5:01 pm - October 6, 2010
Proud Liberal, according to pollster Charlie Cook, it’s too little, too late:
http://www.nationaljournal.com/njonline/po_20101006_3833.php?mrefid=email_offtotheraces
Comment by Sebastian Shaw — October 6, 2010 @ 5:17 pm - October 6, 2010
Kicked Puppy’s just jealous that the Republicans impeached President Clinton for perjury (which he later admitted to) and they couldn’t find anything to impeach President Bush on.
Comment by The_Livewire — October 6, 2010 @ 6:12 pm - October 6, 2010
Gov Manchin of West Virginia will continue his suit against the Obama administration after the election because coal mining is very vital to the State. When I was in school during the 30s, my county taxes were only enough to keep the schools open one month. The money for the other 8 months came from the steel mills in Wheeling and Weirton, the chemical plants along the Kanawha River but mostly from the coal mines.
Actually, Sonicfrog, the mountain tops are reforested and after several years it looks just like it did before.
Comment by John W — October 7, 2010 @ 2:34 am - October 7, 2010