On March 31, the Trump administration announced the cutting of 2/3 of the workers-safety agency, NIOSH. (I wrote about it here.) Despite the obvious effects that this action would have upon West Virginia’s miners, it took West Virginia’s senior senator, Shelley Moore Capito, over three weeks to formally object:

ICYMI: I’m urging the reinstatement of the NIOSH employees so they can continue to support our nation’s coal industry.https://t.co/4BR6YkgJL4

— Shelley Moore Capito (@SenCapito) April 23, 2025

In between those events, however, she was more than willing to take a bow at a Trump rally in which the President bragged and lied about how he was going to bring back clean, beautiful coal:

Thanks for standing up for West Virginia coal, @POTUS! pic.twitter.com/yhNlqWCRUD

— Shelley Moore Capito (@SenCapito) April 8, 2025

Over three weeks to reply? What was Capito waiting for?

But Capito’s reticence to confront Trump and Kennedy on miner safety apparently didn’t matter to our local Ogden newspaper where she has long been one of the paper’s favorites; yesterday’s Wheeling Intelligencer predictably praised her in its lead editorial:

It was important for Capito to stand up for our workers when she reminded Kennedy, “As the president recognizes the importance of coal, we must also recognize the health of our miners and I encourage you to bring back the NIOSH coal programs and researchers that will help ensure the president’s vision to unleash American energy can be done safely.”

The editorial concluded:

Surely, he will recognize how important it is to fulfill his mission correctly, not just quickly. Capito — and the rest of our congressional delegation — must not let up the pressure until he does.

“Surely, he will recognize” – if Capito is talking about Kennedy, I wouldn't hold my breath. And the WV congressional delegation “must not let up the pressure.” In addition to Capito who waited three weeks to complain, here’s a look at the “pressure” that the WV congressional delegation has brought to this matter:

From Senator Jim Justice earlier this month via Axios:

"West Virginians, they're in lock step with President Trump," Justice told Axios. "But at the same time, there's so, so, so many people that are dependent" on programs like NIOSH. Justice expressed faith that Trump would fix the issue.

Later this month, the Senator sounded more like Governor Jim Justice (with the usual folksy jibberish.) He told MetroNews:

Justice said that during this time of trying to make sure that fraud and abuse is gone, sometimes you’re going to have mix-ups.

“On a national basis, you know we’re going to mow too close to the fence and then we’re going to have to make adjustments,” he said.

He says the only thing we can do is continue moving forward to see if what is going on with cuts is working.

“But if we go forward, let’s just breath and give it a little time to see if all this stuff starts working,” Justice said.

Huh?

Early on, both WV representatives declined to comment. (Both Riley Moore and Carol Miller attended Trump’s coal rally, however.) Mid-month, Riley Moore remarked:

“That, by the way, is a mistake that we are working to roll back,” Moore said during an appearance Monday on MetroNews “Talkline.” “We do need NIOSH. We are talking to the administration there and that’s something that we are going to fix.”

Moore later claimed that some of the layoffs were made in error even though the Morgantown federal employee president, Cathy Tinney-Zara, was unable to confirm that there was an error or even where Moore got his information.

Additionally, I could not find any comments on the NIOSH layoffs by the WV1 representative, Carol Miller.

Yes, this is the sum total of the “pressure” from WV’s congressional delegation.

Finally, I guess neither our legislators nor the Intelligencer have considered the likely damage that Trump’s tariff policy will bring to the state’s coal industry. In early April, Forbes speculated on the likely effects of Trump’s tariffs:

China is a big coal importer, especially for steel production. In 2024, the U.S. shipped around 11.6 million tons of coal to China. West Virginia sent over 6 million tons, which is a lifesaver for a coal-producing state. But if something happens to those exports, like a tariff that makes it harder to trade, it will hurt coal companies and the thousands of miners who work for them.

The timing of the tariffs could not get any worse, given the steady decline of U.S. coal consumption. It’s now at about 16% of the nation’s electricity portfolio and falling. According to Statista, the coal sector employs about 14,000 people in West Virginia and 5,000 in Kentucky. The tariffs could lead to lost jobs in those states and reduced tax revenues.

Last week, Tre Spencer at Mountain State Spotlight explained further:

China retaliated with tariffs taxing American coal and natural gas by 15%, hitting an important sector of West Virginia’s economy. The state provides 28% of the nation’s coal exports, more than any other state.

Trump has positioned himself as a champion of coal, vowing to “end Joe Biden’s war on beautiful, clean coal,” roll back regulations and bring back mining jobs. However, his administration’s escalating trade battle with China is putting pressure on manufacturers and resource-based industries.

Given their actions on this matter, it seems clear to me that West Virginia's congressional delegation primary (and maybe, only) concern is to stay on Trump's good side. As for miner safety? At best, they will pretend to care knowing that at least one statewide newspaper chain, Ogden Newspapers, will not call them out.