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Monday, August 09, 2004
Is Bush Shooting Himself in the Foot in Appalachia?
Posted by DavidNYCThis NYT story about coal mining regulations has me perplexed. On the one hand, it says that Bush wooed the mining vote in West Virginia in 2000 by promising to roll back environmental restrictions - ie, the kinds of regulations which allegedly were reducing the number of available mining jobs. WV, ordinarily a solid Democratic state, went for Bush - though Al Gore's gun stance (and some speculate, Joe Lieberman's religion) had something to do with it as well.
But now it seems, at the behest of the coal companies, Bushco is determined to roll back mining safety regulations, which are a horse of a much blacker color. The miners themselves - through their unions - are apparently quite opposed to such rollbacks. These anti-regulations, for instance, would permit exposure to even higher levels of coal dust - which is responsible for the dreaded black lung disease - even while OSHA itself is arguing for lower levels.
I can understand why the Bushies want to please their corporate benefactors in the coal industry. But coal executives don't cast too many votes. In order to once again carry a place like WV, Bush will need the rank-and-file - and if he's telling these works to literally eat his dust, I can't see how that's gonna help. And it seems to me that this is now the second time Bush has struck out when trying to win votes by helping a dying smokestack industry in Appalachia - remember steel tariffs, anyone? This news just put OH, PA and WV that much further out of Bush's grasp.
P.S. Environmental regulations - the kind promulgated by, say, the EPA or OSHA - are a key reason why it's so important to have a Democratic president. These sorts of rules can often be strengthened simply by a president's (or agency administrator's) directive, without getting stymed by lobbyists in Congress. And the regulations will get enforced by the president's appointees, who, without a doubt, will be much more vigilant in a Kerry administration than in a Bush administration.
Posted at 12:59 AM in Economy, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia | Technorati
Comments
Aren't all executive directives subject to judicial review?
Posted by: Grant at August 9, 2004 06:28 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
This is exactly why Bush is in serious trouble in WV. Sure, the miners went with Bush in 2000 out of concern that Gore was going to make their livelihoods difficult with new environmental regulations. But, Bush is a representative of corporate America, and it's shown over the past four years. I think it's pretty safe to say Bush will lose WV this year.
Posted by: Rock_nj at August 9, 2004 08:59 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Seeing as Gore lost WV because people in mining communities decided not to bother voting 'cos of his enviromentalism and that an increased turnout there will see Kerry take WV easily... this is just about the most idiotic thing Bush could have done as far as WV goes (short of punching Robert Byrd in the face) as it's certain to result in a higher turnout in Coal Country.
On one hand I'm pleased that Bush will probably lose WV because of this (and hurts him across the Appalachian coalfield) but on the other hand (and bear in mind that I'm from a mining family in the U.K) I'm furious that he's in effect sentencing hundreds of miners to death (and their families to abject poverty, alcoholism, drug abuse etc...) so he can get more money from corrupt Coal Owners so he can blow it on more ads... >:(
Posted by: Al at August 9, 2004 09:35 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
I think Bush is just doing what a good Republican does. He's taking care of the moneyed interests who put him in power. The coal miners are of no importance to him at all. Even reelection isn't all that important, especially considering a state like WV only has 5 EVs, they are expendable. What's important is that his friends in the coal industry are taken care of and that their profits increase. I'm glad the coal miners are finally waking up to the fact that Bush is screwing them over. I'd give Bush a slim chance of winning WV at this point, unless something dramatic happens to swing the election like Osama Bin Laden is pulled out of Afghanstan three days before the election (a real possibility!).
Posted by: Rock_nj at August 9, 2004 10:08 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Just west of Appalachia (right across the river, in fact):
Ohio poll: Kerry in full Buckeye bloom
West Virginia--which it was recently my pleasure to visit--is a heavily unionized state. This kind of thing I think only succeeds in mobilizing his opposition. They really don't have a deft touch right now.
Posted by: joseph at August 9, 2004 04:06 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Aren't all executive directives subject to judicial review?
Sure - a president can't promulgate an illegal order. But as far as I'm aware, only two executive orders have ever been overturned by the courts. Congress can also pass a law that stymies an exective order, but because of the veto power, it would take an effective two-thirds majority for such a law to have any meaning.
Posted by: DavidNYC at August 9, 2004 05:39 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
It could also be that RoveBushCo have read the tea leaves and decided that they're going to lose, and they're taking care of as many of their friends as possible before they go.
Posted by: beerwulf at August 10, 2004 09:48 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Good point beerwolf. If Bush loses, he still took care of his friends in the coal industry. If he wins, all the better. I think people in the Bush White House must be preparing resumes at this point. The election will be close, but Kerry looks like he's in a great position to win, and anyone in the Bush camp with any sense knows this. Bush campaigining in VA yesterday?!? What's up with that??? Bush is in trouble.
Posted by: Rock_nj at August 10, 2004 10:10 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
From what I've seen, the Bush team isn't either stupid or incompetent. Misguided, imperfect, and ideological, sure. Willing to bend the truth and misrepresent the facts, sure. But (with the planning of the Iraq war and reconstruction effort as an exception) these folks do tend to plan ahead. It seems to me that if they are doing something that is likely to cost them a crucial margin in crucial states for little gain, then I would suspect them of having something up their sleeve which they plan to use to turn it around - something that will swing a lot more votes their way. I find myself wondering what card, specifically, Hughes, Rove, Card etc. have up their sleeve for this.
"Pulling Osama out of that place where he has been stashed secretly" is too implausible. I don't think such a secret could be maintained.
I do wonder to what extent unauditable electronic voting machines are present in each of the various swing states and who the makers and operators are in each case. If I found that Diebold (for example) had just secured contracts to provide electronic voting machines in these same states, I'd be a little more concerned.
Am I being too paranoid? Is the swing state project a place to examine the question of deliberate vote fixing, whether it's a real concern, and what we can do to minimize its impact on the coming election?
Also, does anyone have other ideas of what the Bush team might be planning "outside traditional methods" (like media buys)?
Posted by: Mitch_CalifProgressive at August 10, 2004 12:03 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
The Osama Bin Laden being pulled from a cave two days before the election is one thing I've read in many places. It's not all that implausible either, and it would work. Sure, some people might cry fowl, but so what? The majority of the American people don't think, they're emotional beings, and it will probably affect enough people's emotions to push Bush over the top. The Bush Admin is putting extrodinary pressure on Pakistan to find Bin Laden before November.
Another dirty trick, is possibly a staged terrorist attack to help Bush out. Some might say that's too imlausible, too immoral for them to do to win an election. Consider past Republican dirty tricks to win elections, and ask yourself if they wouldn't do something equally as immoral:
1968 - Richard Nixon interferes with the Johnson Admin Viet Nam peace negotiations to prevent his Democratic opponent from gaining advantage from a peace deal. An action that possibly caused the war to last for another 7 years, costing 10,000s of American lives. Read about it in Christropher Hitchen's "Trial of Henery Kissinger" The Secret of '68.
1980 - Ronald Reagan's campaign interferred with Carter's Iranian hostage negotiations, to preven Carter from capitalizing on an "October Surprise" release of the hostages to win the election. There's a lot of documentation of this occurance, including prominent Iranians liek their President at the time, who have testified that there was a deal between their government and the Reagan campaign.
1988 - George H.W. Bush conducts a scorched earth campaign against his opponent Michael Dukakis, bringing politics down to a new low level of discourse.
2000 - Jeb Bush went to extrodinary lengths to ensure that his brother wins Florida, including purging 10,000s of voters from the roles who were eligible to vote.
Dirty Tricks are a staple of Republican campaigns.
Posted by: Rock_nj at August 10, 2004 02:02 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
It sounds like we're becoming the equivalent of a Banana Republic when it comes to accurate and fair voting in this country. Maybe we should ask the UN to come in and monitor the voting across the nation to ensure that there is no cheating. I'm hearing and reading a lot of paranoia from Democrats that Ohio and Florida will go Republican in November--one way or another. It's almost like we're questioning the veracity of the outcome before we even have an outcome. Florida four years ago has really poisioned the nation, as I'm sure that if the Republicans squeak out wins in Ohio and Florida, a lot of Democrats will be screaming conspiracy, rightly or wrongly.
To be fair, Florida wasn't the first voter controversy. When JFK was elected president in 1960 there was an on-going controversy regarding how JFK won the state of Illinois. I believe a lot of dead people in Chicago voted for him. There were probably others before that one, too. It doesn't matter if these controversies are valid or not, they take a reality of their own, where nothing is what it is.
Posted by: Pepe at August 10, 2004 02:53 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
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Posted by: Riley Supporter at August 10, 2004 03:14 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Rock-NJ - True Kennedy had some help from the dead in Chicago...Vote early, vote often is still a saying both parties use when the press is not around. However, southern Illinois had some similiar issues with dead people voting for Nixon. This is one of the reasons Nixon never challenged the election results like Gore rightfully did in 2000.
Posted by: Michael at August 10, 2004 04:19 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
WHY JOHN WHY???? Why in the heck would you now say you'd vote for the war? You let the Bushies bully you into an answer and now they are going to hammer you with that, just like that scumf$&^ George the first did in 1988. Just when people were starting to ignore the flip flop label, you give them a whole reason to consider it. Whoever said American's vote largely with emotion is 100% correct.
I hope his campaign manager or Edwards or someone slaps him upside the head and tells him not to say stupid things. I can't take four more years of Bush the sequel.
Posted by: Michael at August 10, 2004 04:23 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
I agree, the Dems have some election shenanigans skeltons in their closet. But, that was a long time ago. Certainly, Democratic election shenanigans have been just a fraction of what the Republicans have pulled off since the 1960s. The Republicans have really mastered the art of propaganda with the American electorate. They know how to push people's buttons.
I forget to mention Richard Nixon's 1972 break in at the Democratic Nation Comittee (Watergate). That was another election shenanigan. Yes, it is the sort of thing that happens in bannana republics. The Bannana Republicans have turned this country into a bannana republic of sorts. It serves them very well, less respect for government, means they can get away with more shenanigans. While the cat is away, the mice will play...
Posted by: Rock_nj at August 10, 2004 06:19 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
I agree, the Dems have some election shenanigans skeltons in their closet. But, that was a long time ago. Certainly, Democratic election shenanigans have been just a fraction of what the Republicans have pulled off since the 1960s. The Republicans have really mastered the art of propaganda with the American electorate. They know how to push people's buttons.
I forgot to mention Richard Nixon's 1972 break in at the Democratic Nation Comittee (Watergate). That was another election shenanigan. Yes, it is the sort of thing that happens in bannana republics. The Bannana Republicans have turned this country into a bannana republic of sorts. It serves them very well, less respect for government, means they can get away with more shenanigans. While the cat is away, the mice will play...
Posted by: Rock_nj at August 10, 2004 06:19 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Mitch:
Hate to tell you, but it is my understanding that the President of Diebold lives in Ohio, and hosted a fundraiser for Bush in which he promised to 'help deliver' that state to Bush.
Of course he will claim it is as a citizen/volunteer, but given his position, he should not have made such a statement, and it certainly makes one wonder.
Posted by: sinister minister at August 11, 2004 02:49 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
That is true, the President of Diebold lives in Ohio, and has promised to deliver Ohio for Bush. He didn't say how he would deliver the state to Bush, but we all know Diebold makes voting machines that are untracable. What a nice way to win the election. Just program the computers for your candidate.
Posted by: Rock_nj at August 11, 2004 10:00 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
I never once thought about health care, unemployment or the coal industry as I watched those highjacked planes hit those buildings on 9/11. BE HONEST my fellow West Virginians and Democrats ... did you? Our priorities changed that day.
We take great pride in our strength of character here. Use that strength now to stand with President Bush ... unlike Kerry, he will continue to defend and protect you regardless of your inability to remember what's REALLY important!
Posted by: Tami at September 8, 2004 07:28 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
"God Bless the USA!!!" You darn well just won my vote...sheeeeeesh...
Posted by: disgruntled_repub at September 8, 2004 07:38 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Hey, I live near the WTC and could see the smoke on 9/11/01. I actually know a few people who died on 9/11/01 at the WTC. So, I'm not insensitive about what happened. But, I do think we're placing a little too much emphasis on 9/11. Sure we have to be vigilant against terrorism, but that doesn't mean that we just forget about everything else. Did you know that over 100,000 Americans have died prematurely since 9/11/01 from such things as wrongly filled prescriptions and car accidents. Why are solutions to these more leathly problems ignored. Don't fall for the 9/11 con job by Bush.
Posted by: Rock_nj at September 8, 2004 08:59 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Another thing about WV. I was amazed to learn that the coal industry only provides 16,000 jobs. I know that might be a lot in WV. But, perhaps you should be looking at creating new jobs. Most of the coal jobs aren't coming back. 1,000 coal jobs have been lost since 2000 due to automation. Look forward. Support things like clean coal.
Posted by: Rock_nj at September 8, 2004 09:14 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
I hear you, Rock. I wish people in places like WV would question why so many New Yorkers, who lived through 9/11 are voting en masse to oust George Bush. That really should speak volumes to the rest of the country, and yet it does not resonate. When I was in Ohio this past June (shortly after a possible terrorist plot to blow up a mall in Columbus was aborted), I remember hearing a talk show--out of Cleveland, no less. Callers one after the other were talking about how "they aren't pansies" in Ohio, and if the terrorists tried something like what they did in NYC, they would regret the day they were born. They kept talking about how the Midwest is not the East Coast, and in places like Ohio, Michigan and the Great American Heartland, would stand up and fight. I was shocked, and after about ten minutes of this kind of talk, I had to change stations. I really felt like I had been away from Ohio for so long, I really didn't know the Buckeye State any more.
Posted by: Pepe at September 8, 2004 09:31 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
Well, I think New Yorkers would be voting for the Democratic ticket regardless of the situation. I think most New Yorkers realize that their security concerns are everyday life concerns. Even after 9/11, a New Yorker is far more likely to die from any number of preventable causes than terrorism. I think New Yorkers see through the whole 9/11 baiting better than anyone. There's no doubt that the Republicans were using 9/11 during their convention as a rallying cry.
I understand what you're saying about the gung ho mentality in Middle America. It's really kind of misplaced, and is indicative of why we're such a militaristic society. Militarism sells in Middle America, Republicans have done a great job manipulating this tendancy of Americans to be militaristic. The War on Terrorism plays right into this mentality, which is why it's great for Republicans, and why they're so quick to use it as an issue. What would Bush have to run on this year without 9/11 and the War on Terror? It saved his Presidency. As I pointed out earlier, there are far more dangerous aspects of our lives than terrorism, which are ignored because they lack sex appeal. You're far more likely to die while driving to a drug store to get a prescription filled, or from the prescription itself, than from some rare terrorist incident. I think terrorism has become the new boogeyman.
Posted by: Rock_nj at September 9, 2004 12:04 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
I couldn't agree more, Rock. When I used to take students on an overseas trip, many parents had a lot of safety concerns about how safe it was to travel to Europe. My response was always that the most dangerous part would be getting on I-40 to get to the airport, and then getting back on I-40 to get home! I'd venture that more people have died on our roads in the past year than on airplanes in the past 2 or 3 decades combined.
Posted by: Pepe at September 9, 2004 06:35 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
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Posted by: Ralph at November 11, 2004 01:15 AM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment
A Host of Posts Gone Horribly Wrong. I am from WV and I think you are a little bit too pessimistic thinking that it will be going strongly Democratic any time soon. Sorry, but as much as you detest them (apparently) Republican values are much more attractive than the alternative. I am sure you will come back with some comment about money for the wealthy et al, but you know what, when research is done you will find that what you are so sure is the case is not necessarily true.
Thank God for four more years.
Posted by: pizall at December 31, 2004 07:04 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment