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Heart to Heart

I’m writing this on Valentine’s Day, three days into the 60-day legislative session, and if Gov. Patrick Morrisey and some members of the Republican caucus in the House of Delegates have love for each other, I’m having a hard time seeing the floating hearts. Morrisey presented his first State of the State address Wednesday night to a joint session of the West Virginia Legislature, but even before he presented his legislative agenda, I was hearing consternation from House Republicans about pressure from those in the Morrisey administration. In fact, one thing I noticed Friday is ...

World’s Biggest Business Needs Common Sense

Parts of West Virginia are less than an hour’s drive from Washington, but the two places could not be any more different. It’s not about the size of the cities or how many people live there, it’s about the way we think. It’s about culture, priorities and how we approach government. Inside the beltway, everybody is too busy worrying about the next election. But I never approached things that way. Back home, sure, people are busy. They’ve got plenty to do. But there’s this feeling of community, of belonging, of we are all in this together. And that is sorely lacking in a ...

Marshall Memo: Video Game Soundtracks; Love the Bus Month; and Princess Tea

The annual Marshall County Strings benefit concert, “Game On,” will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 18, at the John Marshall Center for Performing Arts. Get ready to embark on an epic musical journey as this one-night performance features orchestral renditions of iconic video game scores. You will not want to miss this performance featuring the sounds of “The Legend of Zelda,” “Halo,” and “Super Mario Brothers.” Donations will be accepted and will benefit the Marshall County Strings Program Scholarship and CASA for Children. CASA for Children is a local non-profit ...

Lawsuit Abuse Draining BRIM, Burdening W.Va. Taxpayers

West Virginia taxpayers have dealt with increased consumer and healthcare costs for decades, tied to our formerly poor litigation climate. As our state courts have become fairer in recent years due to legal reforms that have improved our overall economy, the personal injury lawsuit industry has found a new deep pocket to go after—the state of West Virginia itself. Lawsuit after lawsuit has been filed against school boards and other non-profit organizations that use the state’s insurance agency, the West Virginia Board of Risk and Insurance Management. In just the last couple of ...

Yeas and Nays

On Wednesday, I will begin my 15th year involved with the start of the West Virginia Legislature’s regular 60-day session. I moved to Charleston during a snowy January in 2010 a week before the start of that session. I had just started one year prior a news website on behalf of a libertarian think tank focused on government transparency and accountability called West Virginia Watchdog. This was a good 13 years before non-profit-funded journalism would become cool. As a print and radio news reporter in the Mid-Ohio Valley in the mid-2000s, I followed West Virginia politics and wrote ...

Gen. John Adams: Can the U.S. Still Equip its Military in a Time of War?

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is approaching its fourth year. And as it drags on, Washington is learning just how vulnerable our nation could be in a similar conflict. The glaring problem we now encounter is the erosion of our defense industrial base. The once vaunted arsenal of democracy that led America to victory in World War II is long gone. Simply put, we no longer produce the weapons and munitions needed for high-intensity, industrialized conflict. Consider our startling inability to meet Ukraine’s need for 155-millimeter artillery rounds. It’s a key piece of weaponry in ...