HUNTINGTON – I am a proud West Virginian and Appalachian who grew up in Huntington, but also lived in Morgantown for a few years.
As a longtime follower of West Virginia politics and its media coverage, I write in response to The Dominion Post’s recent endorsement of the opponent of United States Senator Shelley Moore Capito in the upcoming General Election. Please know that I am a strong believer in our country’s First Amendment and I absolutely support this newspaper’s right to make this wrongheaded endorsement as well as their decision to decline the use of my words here, but I appreciate The West Virginia Record sharing my response with your readers as some of them consider who to vote for on November 3.
While The Dominion Post suggests the need for a “fresh face” to serve as our Senator from West Virginia, they are discounting Senator Capito’s exemplary service in the West Virginia Legislature and in the U.S. House representing West Virginia’s Second District. She served in both these capacities with great distinction and leadership, which she now brings to the United States Senate.
Bissett
Seen by many as an elected leader who is both reasonable and can reach across the aisle when needed, she’s a proven voice for West Virginians at a time where we find ourselves divided and often failing to talk to each other. While I can say that I have not always agreed with Senator Capito or her votes, I can say that she is respectful to those who think differently on a specific issue and works diligently to find common ground whenever possible. Capito’s level headedness is in stark contrast to her opponent, who is cut from the Bernie Sanders cloth and would be incapable of finding any reasonable compromise due to her extreme and far left views.
As a member of the West Virginia Broadband Enhancement Council, I can assure you that Senator Capito has been leading many of the efforts to increase West Virginia’s connectivity, long before the days of COVID-19. Thanks to Senator Capito’s leadership, Monongalia and Preston counties received nearly $5 million recently for additional broadband deployment in 4,100 households from the USDA. Not unlike road construction in rural areas, expanding our Internet capability takes both time and considerable funds, and Senator Capito has been a steadfast champion of these and other efforts to increase our access to education, healthcare and commerce through better and more reliable connectivity.
The Dominion Post’s endorsement also suggests that Capito’s opponent has great disdain for natural gas. Given the ongoing benefit that northern West Virginia has seen from both drilling and pipeline development, which has been an investment of tens of billion dollars in this region since the development of the Marcellus Shale in 2008, suggesting voters elect an opponent of this natural resource sends a clear message to this industry that you are not welcome in the Mountain State.
Supporting wind and solar makes sense, but it is fuels like natural gas that power West Virginia and other states when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine, as every megawatt of solar and wind needs a megawatt of fossil fuel energy to backstop its use. I would be remiss not to remind you that Capito’s opponent shaved her head on our state Capitol’s steps just a few years ago in attempt to stop a legal and heavily regulated form of mining (Spoiler – It didn’t work.) and I doubt such bizarre behavior will have any sway anyone on the floor of the United States Senate.
As to Capito’s opponent’s suggestion of a so-called “living wage” for workers, I am far more interested in what someone who writes paychecks has to say about paying workers. In college towns like Huntington and Morgantown, many of us worked through our time in higher education. These jobs, which were often connected to retail or the food industry, allowed us to pay our bills and know that better days were ahead, but it also kept the cost of living low so we could get access to the items we needed.
In the philosophy of Capito’s opponent, everyone should get paid whatever the government says, regardless of your business model, cost of production, or the financial risks that the owner has taken to open their business. By this socialist philosophy, we can get whatever we want until the money runs out and the businesses close, but where do the paycheck come from then? The government?
I plan to vote for Senator Capito on November 3 and hope your readers do as well. At a time when print journalism is suffering and we need more objective and fair-minded reporters, I’d suggest a vibrant and diverse economy would be good for every business in West Virginia, including The Dominion Post.
Bissett serves as the President & CEO of the Huntington Regional Chamber of Commerce, which represents 550 businesses in Cabell and Wayne counties. While his Chamber’s Political Action Committee, HuntPAC, has endorsed Senator Capito for reelection in November, the views expressed here are his own.