Tag: nick rahall

Congressional staffers: you see this guy? #wv03

This guy?

Yeah. Don’t be this guy. Because the only reason why this kid might still have a job by the end of the week will be because Nick Rahall figures that the kid will be out of work anyway by the end of November*.

Moe Lane

PS: Evan Jenkins for West Virginia-03.

*When a Congressman loses an election, the staff gets downsized pretty darn quickly.

Joe Manchin (D, West Virginia) backstabs Nick Rahall (D, WV).

Well, isn’t this interesting.

  • February, 2013: “U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced today that he is honored to invite Major Richard Ojeda, a West Virginia veteran and a community organizer, as his guest for the President’s State of the Union address.”
  • October, 2013: “A nationally recognized political report has moved a possible race for Congress next year in West Virginia from “Lean Democrat” to “Toss Up.” The Cook Political Report said Friday state Sen. Evan Jenkins, R-Cabell, is drawing closer to longtime 3rd District Congressman Nick Rahall.”
  • January, 2014: “Rahall has outrun the political change in West Virginia so far, but Obama’s dire approval ratings here are dangerous for the veteran incumbent.”
  • January, 2014: “Richard Ojeda, a West Virginia veteran who was Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-W.Va.) guest at the State of the Union last year, apparently liked what he saw of Congress. Ojeda has announced that he plans to challenge 19-term congressional veteran Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.) in the state’s upcoming primary.”

Continue reading Joe Manchin (D, West Virginia) backstabs Nick Rahall (D, WV).

Nick Rahall (D, West Virginia) and the carbon tax.

This ad from the American Energy Alliance against Congressman Nick Rahall is not precisely subtle:

…which does not mean that it’s incorrect. Basically: in 2013 Rahall voted for the Progressive Caucus’s budget amendment.  Said amendment relied on a carbon tax; carbon taxes are bad news to West Virginia coal miners, given that you tax things when you don’t want more of it; and Nick Rahall is apparently an idiot for thinking that this wouldn’t show up in an attack ad against him.  It was certainly more or less predicted, back in 2013: Continue reading Nick Rahall (D, West Virginia) and the carbon tax.

Nick Rahall (D, West Virginia) must repudiate the pension-busting financial transaction tax.

…Do not be embarrassed if you have to ask, What is a financial transaction tax (FTT)? I had to have had it explained to me, too.

Basically, it’s part of the well-the-Democrats-didn’t-quite-kill-the-economy-last-time-so-let’s-try-again ‘budget’ proposal (called, with no visible awareness of irony, the ‘Back to Work Budget’) set up by the Congressional Progressive Caucus.  Essentially, what they want to do is tax actual stock, bond, and derivative contracts transactions.  Not the profits made on those transactions; the transactions themselves.  As even a cursory glance at the previous link will reveal, Heritage is absolutely horrified at the idea, largely because a FTT would have horrific effects on profits.  Including, say, profits acquired by pension funds – and, no, they didn’t carve out an exception for pension funds. And yes, this is an issue; Europe is going through its own version of this, and the Left over there is pretty adamant that pension funds not be exempted.  Because the Left wants that money.

Shorter Moe Lane: remember the Stamp Act?  Yeah, that’s what this is, more or less. Different system, different reasons, same basic idea.

Continue reading Nick Rahall (D, West Virginia) must repudiate the pension-busting financial transaction tax.

Democrats declare war on West Virginia. Again.

Well, it’s not like the state voted for the current President anyway. Hell, the often-strained history between West Virginians and national Democrats stretches back to 1863. Still, this is a little… petty… of the Democratic party, isn’t it?

A Pittsburgh-based coal company, CONSOL Energy, will lay off nearly 500 of its West Virginia workers next year and its CEO blames environmentalists dead-set against mountaintop mining who have waged “nuisance” lawsuits for the job loss.

But CONSOL Energy’s political problems are not unique to the mining industry, which has suffered under the Obama Administration. The Environmental Protection Agency is already holding 79 surface mining permits in West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee. The EPA says these permits could violate the Clean Water Act and warrant “enhanced” review. And, agency went even further in October, announcing plans to revoke a permit for the Spruce No. 1 Mine in West Virginia.

Via Dana Loesch (via Instapundit) which also has video of the President casually talking about strangling future coal power generation: I’d also like to note that this should come as no surprise to anybody.  You Were Warned.   Repeatedly.  I Told You So.  Finally,  I’m sure that local Democrats Congressmen Alan Mollohan* and Nick Rahall**, Senator Jay Rockefeller, and Senator Robert Byrd’s staff are all quiveringly eager to explain to their constituents why their own political party is using the federal government to promote a Crusade against the state of West Virginia.

Or perhaps they’re just quivering.

Moe Lane

*Challenger: State Senator Clark Barnes.
**Challenger: Lee Bias.

Crossposted to RedState.

West Virginian Democrats shocked at War on Coal.

(H/T: Instapundit) They’re particularly indignant that the President that so many of them supported has decided to let the EPA strangle their state’s core industry via the selective refusal of permits.  Which is not surprising, given that this administration’s hatred of the coal industry was not precisely a secret – but still, they’re upset:

West Virginia’s Democratic Gov. Joe Manchin III, who supported Mr. Obama’s candidacy, called the EPA moves part of a stealth campaign to stifle the industry.

“Right now, my belief is that they’re trying to kill off surface mining through regulation what they cannot get done through legislation,” Mr. Manchin told MetroNews Talkline, a West Virginia call-in radio program, earlier this month. In West Virginia, 23 permits are being held up, with other affected states being Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee.

His concern is shared by Sen. Rockefeller (also an Obama supporter) – but may I be blunt?  Let me be blunt: nobody cares.  Maybe West Virginia Democrats would have gotten a better deal if they had flipped the state.  Maybe.  But the state went strong for Clinton in the primary, and then went strong for McCain in the general, so they’re pretty much worthless by this administration’s standards.

And, again: this should surprise nobody.  The current ruling party’s elites do not want to increase the amount of energy that this country consumes. They want to decrease it, in fact.  They are not shy about saying so, either.  So there is no excuse for not knowing this all along; and any less at being affronted.  Angry, yes – but not affronted.

Moe Lane

PS: It should be noted that the Rep. Nick Rahall from Amanda’s article is happy to defend the administration’s hatred of the coal industry.  It should also be noted that Rep. Rahall is a 32-year Member of Congress who represents a R+6 district.  And he even has a challenger already: Lee Bias, who looks to be very sensible on energy and healthcare policy.

Crossposted to RedState.

Well, so *what* if kids can’t hunt for fossils?

The Democrats are trying to pass a public lands bill here. Besides, fossil enthusiasts are too small a group to be worth any consideration past the minimum. From CQ (no link, sorry):

A public lands bill on its way to the House floor is meeting resistance from an unlikely constituency: amateur fossil hunters.

The bill (S 22), which encompasses dozens of measures to expand national park and wilderness areas, includes language that would impose criminal and civil penalties on people who take fossils from federal lands. But Rep. John Culberson, R-Texas, opposes the provision so much that he is rallying opposition to the bill.

“I’m only asking that this section be stripped out,” said Culberson, who is concerned about its impact on casual collectors. Culberson himself is an amateur fossil hound who once discovered a wolf jaw from the Ice Age. “They’re going to destroy the hobby of fossil collecting,” he said.

Continue reading Well, so *what* if kids can’t hunt for fossils?