You may have seen these U.S. senate poll results:
Gov. Jim Justice (https://t.co/qFXOTxIbbC.) is leading incumbent Sen. Joe Manchin (https://t.co/waPScvSVml.) by 22 points in a hypothetical U.S. Senate matchup in 2024. https://t.co/Laxr3UOZo3
— The Hill (@thehill) May 31, 2023
(By the way, that same poll showed Manchin losing to Mooney by only 1 point.)
It certainly produced reactions. For example, from political consultant David Axelrod on CNN:
Political analyst @davidaxelrod: "I don't want to be unkind to Senator Manchin, but he's kind of dead man walking in West Virginia.[...] He's got a popular Republican governor [running against him] in a state that Donald Trump carried by almost 40 points." https://t.co/bgr3cH82Mm pic.twitter.com/yvH4Px84nK
— The Hill (@thehill) June 6, 2023
Of course, Manchin’s response was the usual response when a candidate trails badly in the polls:
Sen. Joe Manchin, https://t.co/DW6oJHnNxa., said only one poll matters, and that is the one on Election Day. https://t.co/HRfQ9p2wvA
— Times West Virginian (@TimesWV) June 6, 2023
Yes, Manchin is correct -- we are still 11 months away from the Republican primary and 17 months away from the general election. Still. . . .
And the Republican candidates
Jim Justice
How important is this election? According to our apocalyptic governor, it is very serious -- the United States will not survive if Republicans do not win:
I am running for Senate because I believe with all my heart, if we do not take back the Senate in 2024, our country as we know it cannot survive. pic.twitter.com/F7qgGcKlIA
— Jim Justice (@JimJusticeWV) June 5, 2023
And our governor continues to remind us of the state’s budget surplus:
We continue to break record after record, and we just shattered another. Our surplus is over $1.7B for the first time ever, and there's another month to go in FY 2023. I am beyond proud of the hardworking West Virginians who make these historic accomplishments possible. pic.twitter.com/3JukeI20ra
— Governor Jim Justice (@WVGovernor) June 1, 2023
However, not everyone shares that perspective:
Your state infrastructure is in shambles. Your citizens have unmet needs. Your teacher pay is among the lowest in the nation. Your higher Ed institutions are forcing resignations and retirements because of budget cuts. How is this surplus a thing to brag about? https://t.co/Pq73xye3Gd
— Neema Avashia (@AvashiaNeema) June 2, 2023
And the governor has been keeping busy. Last week, Justice used the WV National Guard for a political stunt:
I am deploying the West Virginia National Guard to our southern border to help stop the flow of drugs, human trafficking, and illegal activity. We are going to do our part to respond to the Biden crisis at the southern border. pic.twitter.com/lEaKdcdOvv
— Jim Justice (@JimJusticeWV) June 1, 2023
It was nice to see that at least one media source asked the right question. From a recent Charleston Gazette editorial:
How, exactly, are 50 Guard members from West Virginia going [to] help address the problems at the border? Not only is it an underwhelming amount of manpower, but Justice didn’t seem to know what the Guard members would be doing, specifically, when he made the announcement.
And it’s a good thing we have a surplus; WV News suggests that the deployment will cost the state around $600,000.
Alex Mooney
Not unlike his sponsored legislation to return the U.S. to the gold standard, Mooney continues to push another bill that will have little effect upon the day-to-day life of West Virginians:
Rep. Alex Mooney Aims to Block Fed's Digital Currency Scheme
— Money Metals Exchange (@MoneyMetals) June 6, 2023
https://t.co/azovNY4r4Y
And what does Mooney highlight on his government account? How about an easily discredited attack upon an American retailer who supposedly is radicalizing America’s youth?
Parents don’t want their kids being force fed propaganda and their traditional American values attacked.
— Rep. Alex Mooney (@RepAlexMooney) May 25, 2023
We must protect our children and fight tirelessly against the radicalization of our next generation.https://t.co/HKmzvUzkGP
The attacks on Target by the anti-woke crowd have had effects even though they were fact checked by numerous sources and found to be untrue. For example, from the AP fact check:
CLAIM: Target’s Pride collection features a bathing suit for kids that is labeled “tuck-friendly.”
AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. The “tuck-friendly” swimsuits are only offered in adult sizes, according to a spokesperson for the company and Target’s website. Kids’ swimsuits in the collection do not feature this label.
And from USA Today:
The swimsuit is marketed towards adults, not children, and is offered in sizes XXS through 4X. None of the kids' swimsuits in the Pride section are labeled as "tuck-friendly."*
Is this what Alex Mooney is most concerned about: “money metals” and “tuck friendly”? And these are important issues for West Virginians? How is Mooney considered a serious candidate? Or, are these legitimate and major concerns of WV's Trump Party?
*The actual truth of what Target advertised is obviously unimportant to the anti-woke right. Along with Budweiser, Target was again attacked on today's Wheeling Intelligencer editorial page in a Rich Lowry column.