Because I sure am hearing a lot of people say,
“Let them eat cake!”
And it is pathetic.
Why don’t you take a listen to Hazel Dickens —
And tell me what happened to West Virginia.
West Virginia was one of the most radical labor states.
“Union” stood on equal terms with “God” and “Family”.
So what happened??
West Virginia consistently voted more Democratic than the nation until the 2000 election.
Hillary Clinton lost West Virginia by 40 points. What happened?
And please don’t use the cop-out about racism or stupidity.
In 1960, WV gave Roman Catholic JFK a 5% win — even though it was 95% Protestant.
Next door Ohio, heavily Catholic, went for Nixon by 7%.
In 1964, WV voted for LBJ by a margin 12% greater than the nation — 68% to 32%.
A larger margin than Michigan, Wisconsin, or Humphrey’s Minnesota.
In 1968, WV voted for Humphrey, ignoring Wallace’s racist dog whistle.
Wallace got less than 10% in WV, but he got 24% in Virginia.
As late as 1988, WV went for Dukakis by 5% — a large margin than New York.
And California went for Bush, if you remember.
If Kossacks are going to keep bashing West Virginians —
And not only bashing, but delighting in their poverty and loss of employment —
Then I want no part.
Is this still the party of Bobby Kennedy or Marie Antoinette?