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Tuesday, May 13, 2008 "When news breaks, we fix it" Serving West Virginia since 2005
Stand By Your Man (updated version)
Manchin vs. WV Right to Life
For several weeks, rumors swirled that Gov. Joe Manchin would not be receiving the endorsement of West Virginians for Life, the leading pro-life organization in the state and the official branch of National Right to Life.But late last week, the announcement was made a mere four days before the election that Manchin was being endorsed in the primary, as was Russ Weeks on the Republican side.Further, Manchin and his chief of staff, Larry Puccio, were spotted having an animated conversation Monday outside the state head-Big decisions to be made in voting today
West Virginia voters were making several big decisions at the polls on Tuesday that will have ramifications for where support and money will go for the November election.While most of the attention has gone to the Democrat presidential primary, the outcome of that race seemed in little doubt, with every poll showing Hillary Clinton swamping Barack Obama at the end of the day.The most interesting race on the Dem side will be in the state Supreme Court race. The outcome of that contest will have a big bearing on the support that will come to GOP Court candidate Beth Walker after today.Most observers seem to feel that former Justice Margaret Workman is a safe bet to win one of the two spots being elected today.As for the other position, if Justice Spike Maynard survives today's Democrat primary, he is likely a shoo-in for reelection in November. Business interests will not be as motivated to support Walker as they will be if either Menis Ketchum or Bob Bastress overcome Maynard today. Frankly, that would be a mistake. Even if Maynard wins today, conservative and business interests should go for the home run swing and work to get both Maynard and Walker elected in November.The other most interesting statewide race today is the GOP contest between Dan Greear and Hiram Lewis to take on Attorney General Darrell McGraw in the fall. The contest comes down to one between Greear's support from most GOP officeholders and institutional leaders versus the name I.D. Lewis has built up through various appearances on the statewide ticket.Garrison hanging on by thread as faculty prepares to weigh in
Tomorrow's full meeting of the West Virginia University faculty will likely provide another nail in the coffin of the presidency of Mike Garrison, even as Garrison attempts to ignore statewide sentiment and proceed as though the only support that matters is from Gov. Joe Manchin and Manchin's personally-appointed WVU Board of Governors.But an Associated Press story today provides a glimpse of what Garrison is facing on the WVU campus. Garrison met Monday with the WVU Faculty Senate, which recently voted 77-19 in favor of Garrison resigning. Garrison offered his usual explanations and defenses, but as the AP reported, "...when the senators had the chance to ask Garrison questions directly, they declined and sat quietly until he left the podium." So Garrison faces a future of the old "silent treatment" from the faculty he oversees -- an impossible situation in the long haul. Meanwhile, "Talkline" host Hoppy Kercheval on Tuesday's show referred to the whole incident as "Stewart Hall held hostage, Day 21."Kanawha GOP chair burned by CNN on interview airing today
Kanawha County Republican Chair Melody Potter consented to an interview with CNN on Monday to discuss today's election, but she was dismayed when she saw the finished report.As all too often happens with the national TV networks, Potter says her comments were condensed to practically nothing, and the snippet that was used was in fact presented as an answer to a different question than the one she was actually asked.Melody said today, "I just watched the story they had about the WV Primary they started running this morning. The part of the story where I was interviewed was taken out of context and edited down to nothing. The 'voice over' question on TV was a different question than I was asked in the actual interview."Melody said she made several points that were ignored by the final CNN report, such as:* "McCain is going to win WV. He is a fiscal and social conservative. He has experience and is strong on National Defense, that President Bush has kept us safe for 8 years."* "That Hillary and Obama are wrong for WV and wrong for America."* "That Universal Healthcare is bad and that it is not free. Our higher taxes will pay for it."* "That there will be a higher voter turnout during the General Election and that we Republicans are going to fight for every vote."Many pro-lifers feel Manchin has done little to nothing as governor to advance the pro-life agenda, and there is a better than average chance that Weeks, a longtime pro-life activist with a perfect voting record on the issue in the Senate, will get the general election nod over Manchin.quarters of West Virginians for Life in Morgantown, either before or after a meeting with pro-life officials.
Governor appears to be at odds with state's top pro-life group, as endorsement comes, but late
JOE MANCHIN
