I think there is still room to grow for the GOP in Appalachia. Take for example West Virginia. There is no reason for why such a state should be represented by two Democrats in the Senate.
That is true, but what are the Democrats doing about it. West-Virginia was a one-party state for much of the 20th century, and it is still poor.
The problem is that the Democrats don’t have a coherent strategy to actually help the working class in these regions. Gun control, immigration reform and climate change legislation might be sound policies, but it isn’t going to help the working class voters in places like West-Virginia.
What is needed is some sort of industrial policy, which both the major parties lack.
The damning thing about states like West Virginia is that while poor countries can "catch up" to rich ones over time, poor
regions of countries almost never catch up to rich regions within the same country. If a poor region is fortunate enough to have some sort of natural resource, its fortunes will generally rise and fall with demand for that resource. Appalachia has always been the poorest region of the United States and always will be. Just as southern Italy and Sicily have always been the poorest region of Italy and always will be.
Why would anyone make capital investments in West Virginia when there are so many more attractive places within the country to put it? Why would a bright West Virginian who wants to be a biomedical researcher or a venture capitalist stay in West Virginia? They wouldn't and they don't. So the state consistently hemorrhages human capital and never attracts financial capital.
You want an industrial policy for West Virginia? Move all the people out. Exploit the hell out of the places where there's coal and turn the rest into a national park. Maybe put up a few rustic cabins and hire some actors to dress the part of mountain folk for the tourists.
