Time For Real Leadership On State’s Greyhound Issue

May 9, 2026

The Northern Panhandle loves dogs. They are members of our families and deserve to be protected from individuals and industries that would do them harm. That is why I support ending greyhound racing in West Virginia. Dog racing proponents claim that the effort to end greyhound racing is being pushed by people who don’t live in the Northern Panhandle. But I’ve lived here my entire life. In fact, I was born on the Market Street Bridge between Ohio and West Virginia, in the back seat of a Wellsburg Police car. After retiring from a successful career as an account executive in the ...

May 12 Primary Election Is About an End to Status Quo in West Virginia

May 9, 2026

When West Virginia Republicans head to the polls Tuesday, the choice could not be clearer: maintain the status quo that has stranded our state at the bottom of national rankings, or elect bold leaders who will put West Virginia first. We witnessed this exact dynamic on the national stage when President Donald J. Trump rode down the golden escalator. He uprooted the old guard, defeated the establishment, and replaced RINOs with America First champions. That is the battle we are fighting right now in West Virginia. The dividing line is stark. Do we want politicians who tolerate higher ...

Ice Cream, War and Its Cost to Americans

May 9, 2026

A few years ago, my wife was at the grocery store when a fellow shopper spoke to her in the freezer section. He reached for a half gallon of ice cream, looked at the price, and casually blamed then-President Barack Obama for how much he had to pay. And so it goes for every president. Wendy Edelberg, a senior fellow in Economic Studies at Brookings said, “in a typical presidential term, the president might get credit or blame ... because he has taken credit… and then it seems fair that if you’re going to take credit, we’re also going to blame you.” That criticism is often ...

Tallying the True Cost of Being a Mother in 2026

May 9, 2026

In 1962 a group called, “The Limeliters,” released a new song on their album. A few months later,” Pete Seeger the writer of the song, put it on his album as well. It was not until 1965 that a folk-rock band named The Byrds made the song famous. The song was entitled “Turn! Turn! Turn!” It is said to have rocketed to the top on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and gained worldwide popularity. The listeners seemed to enjoy the lyrics. The lyrics go something like this, "To everything, turn, turn, turn, there is a season, turn, turn, turn, and a time to every purpose under heaven. A ...

National Hospital Week: Healing Happens Here: Hospitals Save Lives, Communities Thrive

May 9, 2026

Each year, National Hospital Week offers an opportunity to recognize the vital role hospitals play in our daily lives. From May 10–16, we celebrate a simple but powerful truth: healing happens here. In West Virginia, our hospitals do more than treat illness—they save lives and help communities thrive. Hospitals are the backbone of communities across the Mountain State for one fundamental reason: they show up. No matter the hour, and no matter the need, hospitals are there. In a state defined by close-knit communities and rural landscapes, that reliability isn’t just ...

Reporter’s Notebook: Republican Street Fight

May 4, 2026

Last week, I noted how shocked I was by the sheer amount of spending by political action committees and independent expenditure committees in statehouse races for this primary period. As I reported last week, just five groups had spent more than $1.6 million in a 30-day period between March and April 22. Well, a mere one week later and those same five groups have spent more than $2.6 million. So, in the span of a week, these groups increased their spending by $953,709 – nearly $1 million in just seven days. The five groups in this total include Americans for Prosperity, Sugar ...