A thriving school system, inclusive of a free public education, provides students with the tools needed to not only overcome the obstacles facing our state, but also to be positioned for success as responsible citizens.
Here’s a quick rundown of several important issues (including good news on several fronts) you won’t read about elsewhere.
Most Americans loathe “lobbyists,” and most Americans think “bipartisanship” sounds like a good, moderate idea representing compromise and common ground for the public good. So a surprise “bipartisan alliance” between U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and U.S. Senator Ted C…
Even if you know nothing about the Tiananmen Square Massacre, you’ve almost surely seen the famous photo of a man facing down a line of tanks, defiantly blocking their path.
A study by Johns Hopkins University of the abandonment of the needle exchange program by city leaders in Charleston last year should give pause to any public official thinking of following in those misguided policy footsteps.
We have a good news-bad news situation on our hands when it comes to defense spending. The good news is, it’s heading in the right direction: Up. The bad news is, it remains too low to fix the spending holiday that afflicted our military for years — a failure to fund that has seriously compr…
FDA officials are sending mixed messages about a genetic test they just approved — and the lack of clarity could jeopardize Americans’ health.
Memorial Day, formerly known as Decoration Day after its institution in the years following the U.S. Civil War, became a federal holiday in 1971. Observed each last Monday in May, it is set aside as a day to pay tribute to those fallen while serving in the U.S. military.
In a long overdue step forward for the chemically contaminated Fayette County town of Minden, the Environmental Protection Agency has designated it as a National Priorities List Superfund site.
Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes, adding his voice to calls to “break up” the social media giant, calls it a “powerful monopoly, eclipsing all of its rivals and erasing competition.” In recent years, we’ve seen similar claims, and heard demands for similar remedies, aimed at Google, Amazon, …
We have an accumulation of wisdom distilled from centuries of human experience. We call it the U.S. Constitution.
A couple of weeks ago I was speaking to a group of students and decided to start with a point-blank question: Is Congress doing a good job? There were perhaps 100 people in the room, and not a single one raised his or her hand.
We’ve got a rural health care emergency on the horizon.
Happy Mother’s Day to my dear wife, who is a great mom, and to every mother everywhere.
Yes, Rudy Giuliani, there was something wrong with the Trump campaign taking information from Russians – especially when their obvious ill intent was to influence our elections and subvert our democracy. And, no, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, we are not ready to move on anytime soon.
The miners of West Virginia and their families are the heart and soul of the Mountain State. Generations of our patriotic coal miners have spent their lives underground in order to provide our country with energy. They have endured countless years of backbreaking work and they are proud of t…
Did you know secondhand smoke is a serious health hazard causing more than 41,000 deaths per year (American Lung Association, 2019)?
Here’s a surprise: The skills that can be used to win in politics are increasingly the skills needed to produce good policy.
In West Virginia, we know firsthand the devastation that opioids and substance use disorder has had on our families and communities. Too many of our children, siblings, parents and friends have lost their battle as a result of these terrible drugs that have invaded our state. These highly ad…
I haven't read the Mueller report yet. I'm writing this on the day of its release (with redactions) by US Attorney General William Barr. I'll read it later, but I didn't have to read it, or even wait for its release, to reach one conclusion from it: It's time to amend the Constitution to lim…
Nearly three years into a flood recovery effort here in southern West Virginia, a number of officials at the federal, state and local levels have proven they are in over their heads administratively and that they do not possess the necessary compassion, will or know-how to get the job done.
In the year I have served as the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator, I’ve witnessed tremendous change and growth within the small business community. Visiting businesses across the region, I am amazed by both the entrepreneurs who drive our economy and t…
Governor Andrew Cuomo “insisted Monday (April 1) that New York will pass a law to legalize recreational pot before the Legislature adjourns in June,” The New York Post reports. He’s been promising legalization for some time. Many New Yorkers had hoped the measure would be included in this ye…
While most discussions inside education reform hearings held around the state these past couple of weeks have focused on support services for children suffering from the trauma of growing up in broken homes, the benefits and drawbacks of charter schools and the advantages and disadvantages o…
As various House committees gear up for a season of investigations and hearings on President Trump and his administration, a lot of people are worried that progress on the nation’s challenges will grind to a halt. I would argue just the opposite: The wheels of government are turning in favor…
Until fairly recently, scarcity governed the existence of most people. Manufactured items were made of wood, metal, cotton or wool cloth or maybe leather. Items were repaired and reused or handed down to the next generation.
The old saying goes, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
We wish Byrd White III, the state’s newly anointed Director of Transportation, all of the luck and goodwill there is in the world. Having been handed the task of assembling, aligning and prioritizing all road repair projects across this wild, wonderful and mountainous landscape, he will need…
(Last) week, the Senate had an opportunity to vote on the Green New Deal — an unrealistic and impractical wish list dressed up as environmental policy. And it’s a wish list that would have serious consequences for West Virginians and Americans across the country.
Leadership isn’t shown just in what you do. It’s shown in what you don’t do.
For a “progressive” presidential candidate, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is remarkably, well, conservative. Her proposals are neither new nor of the “democratic socialist” variety. In fact, her aim is, as Matthew Yglesias puts it at Vox, “to save capitalism” with stock proposals from…
Since leaving the U.S. House of Representatives in 2011, I've dedicated my professional life to fighting for full implementation and enforcement of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 – a law I had the honor of authoring with Congressional colleagues in true bipartisan spirit.
According to CNN Business, “Facebook, YouTube and Twitter struggle to deal with New Zealand shooting video.”
On Jan. 23, the U.S. National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service released its “interim report” following up with hearings for public comment in February.
Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar recently proposed sweeping reforms to Medicare. He hopes the changes will reduce the price of many cancer drugs and other advanced therapies.
Sometimes we have to measure the success of a state legislative session, at least in part, by what lawmakers did not do, what bills they killed – usually by assigning bad legislation to a committee whose chair knows a thing or two.
Coal mining continues to be one of the most hazardous professions in our society. Even today, while the number of large-scale mining disasters and the number of deaths have certainly declined, coal miners continue to face a work environment that is inherently toxic and unhealthy. Coal miners…
George Washington was lauded as “first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen,” in the words of Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee. But even our nation’s first president couldn’t prevail over the desire for a three-day weekend.
Getting dumped is never fun, but when it happens on Valentine’s Day? That really twists the knife.
Throughout the past year, I have experienced – firsthand – what it’s like to work side by side with a millennial. It’s quite revealing, a bit troubling, and more than challenging. And yet, I am hopeful that, in time, understanding – mutual understanding – of differences might be gifted. We’ll see.
For much of the debate this legislative session, policymakers are leaning on gut instinct rather than the due diligence that we expect of them. They should read up, consider expert testimony, consult research, study science and – God forbid – walk in the footprints of constituents.
We are in the endgame now. By the time some of you read this in the local paper, the session might be over. Or in extended session. More on that shortly.
A century ago, life without electricity wasn’t hard to imagine. But today? There’s hardly an aspect of daily life that doesn’t rely on a steady supply of it.
A wide range of events is causing an increasing number of people to believe that climate change is happening and that something should be done about it. Those events include record-breaking hurricanes, floods, droughts, wildfires, temperature changes, movement of animals to cooler areas, mov…
West Virginia is fast becoming known as the state that loves to hate – thanks to some GOP legislators.
This past week, our hunger relief organization convened to discuss strategies that could impact our state in the next few years. We opened with a general discussion of what the problems are in West Virginia that lead to or stem from hunger. The more common topics came up immediately, includi…
Every day we face life. What is really important?
What better way to stress the urgency and existential need for a national emergency than to wait until the third year of a four-year term in office to announce “I didn’t need to do this” before taking off to play a few rounds of golf over the holiday weekend.
People often ask, “What’s the end of the legislative session like?” I tell them it’s like pulling an all-nighter before a big test...but it goes on for a full week. Buckle up, because this final week will be a wild ride. Here’s the latest on several major issues.
A half century ago, Congress was in the midst of a major debate about Coal Mine Health and Safety. A key component was the high incidence rate of black lung. Passage of the act was heralded as a major victory to curb the presence of this incurable and potentially fatal occupational disease a…
If someone living just down the street planned to open a business that might change the nature of your neighborhood, you would want to know about that.
Commented
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.