BREAKING: Don Blankenship switches parties

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Seriously, though, Blankenship is awful and only funny insofar as he doesn't hold any position of political or economic power (although, as long as he doesn't, he's hilarious).

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Seriously, though, Blankenship is awful and only funny insofar as he doesn't hold any position of political or economic power (although, as long as he doesn't, he's hilarious).

I'd still find him amusing if it wasn't for this forum but the fact many here seem to unironically think he's the heavy favorite to be the Democratic nominee for Governor with a reasoning that amounts to basically "something something populism" plus word salad kind of makes him more irritating than funny.

[deathislife1993]

Just more and more reasons to build up the Mountain Party there. I swear the West Virginia Democratic Party has to be in the top five conservative Democratic state parties in the country.

[Adam Griffin]

It's probably already been alluded to, but the fact is that even today, like one-third of Democratic primary voters in WV basically think like Blankenship. If this turned into a crowded affair, he could come away with a win. In a one-on-one, he doesn't have a shot (even in WV, a majority of Democrats are more or less in line with the national party and broader ideological beliefs).

[Sir Mohamed]

It's probably already been alluded to, but the fact is that even today, like one-third of Democratic primary voters in WV basically think like Blankenship. If this turned into a crowded affair, he could come away with a win. In a one-on-one, he doesn't have a shot (even in WV, a majority of Democrats are more or less in line with the national party and broader ideological beliefs).

Wouldn't bet on that. Hasn't WV, like KY, more registered Dems than GOPers? A majority of them are DINOs who vote conservative in a GE. I think Blakenship can win a 3 or 4 way primary.

[Badger]

Awful. I imagine the state democratic party considers this akin to an offer from a deep kiss by someone with an active herpes outbreak

[RINO Tom]

Awful. I imagine the state democratic party considers this akin to an offer from a deep kiss by someone with an active herpes outbreak

What on Earth makes you give them that much credit?

[Adam Griffin]

It's probably already been alluded to, but the fact is that even today, like one-third of Democratic primary voters in WV basically think like Blankenship. If this turned into a crowded affair, he could come away with a win. In a one-on-one, he doesn't have a shot (even in WV, a majority of Democrats are more or less in line with the national party and broader ideological beliefs).

Wouldn't bet on that. Hasn't WV, like KY, more registered Dems than GOPers? A majority of them are DINOs who vote conservative in a GE. I think Blakenship can win a 3 or 4 way primary.

Registered Dems are around 50% at this point. A statewide non-federal Democrat has an absolute floor of around 30% (even Clinton got 26%) so in apples-to-apples comparisons, you can safely assume around 60% of the electorate at minimum are standard, modern-day Democrats.

At any rate, I agree that Blankenship could win a 3 or 4-way contest, just not a two-way contest.

[Badger]

Awful. I imagine the state democratic party considers this akin to an offer from a deep kiss by someone with an active herpes outbreak

What on Earth makes you give them that much credit?

Because Blankenship is vile, considered Despicable by anyone moderate or left thereof, has the political electability of a 3 week old rotting piece of Roadkill,. And those are his good points.

Come on. The West Virginia GOP is hardly moribund. It's West Virginia, not Wyoming.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Jim Justice 2.0.

He's going to run for governor isn't he? This is going to be a hilarious train-wreak.

And then switch back after he wins. Too obvious.

He's no Jim Justice.  That's his gameplan, but he won't pull it off.

I suspect that if he actually became the Democratic nominee, the party would disavow him.

[President Johnson]

It's so funny how a guy who ended up third a Republican senate primary switching his registration creates a thread of three pages and counting before he even announced to run for anything. Big Don is Atlas's darling

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Once again, who is going to support Blankenship in the primary?

And you can't just say "muh conservadems" as they despise Blankenship as well. Blankenship is probably as popular as Hillary Clinton in coal country.

[MT Treasurer]

Worst Virginia. Lmao.

Nice semantic pleonasm.

[IceSpear]

Once again, who is going to support Blankenship in the primary?

And you can't just say "muh conservadems" as they despise Blankenship as well. Blankenship is probably as popular as Hillary Clinton in coal country.

LOL, former conservadems were Blankenship's main constituency in the Republican primary. He crushed it in Mingo County and did far better in coal country than he did in the north.

Secondly, these are the same people that voted for a literal prison inmate/felon over the incumbent black president.

Thirdly, you clearly have no idea of the political dynamics of WV if you think Blankenship is as despised as Obama/Hillary in the state.

Then she writes about arriving in Mingo County, where there were protesters waiting for her:

Standing with them was Don Blankenship, the multimillionaire former CEO of a large coal company who was convicted for conspiring to violate mine safety regulations after the Upper Big Branch mine explosion killed twenty-nine workers in 2010. He was due to report to prison just days later, but he made time to come protest me first.

She goes on, describing the maddening politics of the coalfields:

Just look at Don Blankenship, the coal boss who joined the protest against me on his way to prison. In recent years, even as the coal industry has struggled and workers have been laid off, top executives like him have pocketed huge pay increases, with compensation rising 60 percent between 2004 and 2016. Blankenship endangered his workers, undermined their union, and polluted their rivers and streams, all while making big profits and contributing millions to Republican candidates. He should have been the least popular man in West Virginia even before he was convicted in the wake of the death of twenty-nine miners. Instead, he was welcomed by the pro-Trump protesters in Williamson. One of them told a reporter that he’d vote for Blankenship for president if he ran. Meanwhile, I pledged to strengthen the laws to protect workers and hold bosses like Blankenship accountable — the fact that he received a jail sentence of just one year was appalling — yet I was the one being protested.

[Tartarus Sauce]

A Blankenship vs Justice race is not only exactly the kind of gubernatorial election that West Virginia deserves, but would also be the setup that would provide Icespear the greatest supply of self-righteous schaudenfraude and the smuggest sense of vindication. Thus, I have no choice but to support this outcome as my preferred scenario.

[Kingpoleon]

Just more and more reasons to build up the Mountain Party there. I swear the West Virginia Democratic Party has to be in the top five conservative Democratic state parties in the country.

Gee, I wonder why.

I mean, seriously. I’ve never heard any GOPer that you really should get more conservative, winning candidates in Vermont, Maryland, and Massachusetts.

[Comrade Funk]

Just more and more reasons to build up the Mountain Party there. I swear the West Virginia Democratic Party has to be in the top five conservative Democratic state parties in the country.

Gee, I wonder why.

I mean, seriously. I’ve never heard any GOPer that you really should get more conservative, winning candidates in Vermont, Maryland, and Massachusetts.

New England longs for some old-school Yankee #conservatism

[Flyersfan232]

He your problem now democrats

[Fuzzy Bear]

He's less in need of a straitjacket than Ojeda these days, lol.

Not that this isn't a low bar.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

The only good news about this is that he thinks having a (D) after his name will help him.

[Mr. Smith]

He's less in need of a straitjacket than Ojeda these days, lol.

Not that this isn't a low bar.

Considering whom you keep supporting and deflecting back to Nixon, a man with more integrity than pretty much any Republican after him besides Ford or Bush Sr...as if it changes anything...

Well you have so little leg to stand on.

[McNukes™ #NYCMMWasAHero]

Just more and more reasons to build up the Mountain Party there. I swear the West Virginia Democratic Party has to be in the top five conservative Democratic state parties in the country.

Gee, I wonder why.

I mean, seriously. I’ve never heard any GOPer that you really should get more conservative, winning candidates in Vermont, Maryland, and Massachusetts.

I've heard conservatives complain that Baker has moved left from his 2014 stances (One GOP Discord server even disavowed him!) but I haven't heard much opposition to Scott or Hogan. I at least hope that they'll give us better districts in these states, so there can be more competition in their state/federal legislative races. I've also considered moving to Vermont because of Scott's policies, since the state will pay me to move there.

[Oryxslayer]

https://twitter.com/Politics1com/status/1186296009783050241

Nice.

[President Johnson]

https://twitter.com/Politics1com/status/1186296009783050241

Nice.

Lmao, why did he switch to Democratic then? This guy is such a trainwreck.

[KaiserDave]

Don! 2020