West Virginia - 62% Romney, all county sweep, fifth most Republican state

[RBH]

So, what you all are saying is that an anti-fracking candidate could use that stance as a way to cozy up to the coal voters too?

But when it comes to coal v. race. Would the "war on Coal" thing be as potent if Hillary was the President? If John McCain was President, and coal had it's 4 years, would those counties have swung hard Dem in a 2012 election?

Also, look at the swings in not just Eastern Kentucky, but the coal counties in Western Kentucky. Amazingly vast. But Elliot County kept their streak alive for four more years.

What the pro-coal Dems who went along with the War on Coal talking points in WV/KY don't quite realize is that the coal companies want to replace those Dems with Republicans sometime real soon. And with the Rs up to 46 in the West Virginia House, they're very close to pulling that off. They're just pawns in the game.

[RBH]

So, what you all are saying is that an anti-fracking candidate could use that stance as a way to cozy up to the coal voters too?

I doubt that would work well either because West Virginia stands to directly benefit from fracking:


Another problem you're going to have with that argument is that the coal industry already feels as though environmental restrictions are killing them, so they would likely see anti-fracking positions as a repeat of the same policy ideas extended to another energy source and identify with the pro-fracking side.

I'd hope that those WV Coal Companies would have some money invested in WV Fracking as well.

But we kind of assume that industries/corporations don't seek Government action to go after competitors too.

There's been a war on coal for decades, it's been waged by alternatives in the free market.

I'd hope some people are at least thinking of other industries that can be put in those areas, instead of having an area where people either work in coal or don't work at all. Granted, there's been kind of a few decades long impasse on the issues of doing things to help rural economies and the sort of economies in Coal Country.