BEALLSVILLE, Ohio – Seventy-plus men walked out of the ground, overalls and hardhats covered in coal dust, and onto the risers of a stage built for a Mitt Romney speech. Posted on 08/19/2012 4:25:06 AM PDT by Kaslin
BEALLSVILLE, Ohio – Seventy-plus men walked out of the ground, overalls and hardhats covered in coal dust, and onto the risers of a stage built for a Mitt Romney speech.
To onlookers, mostly press and staffers, the image was stunning.
To the 2,600 family members gathered in the gravel parking lot or under tents, eating hotdogs and drinking pop, it was a moment of immense pride.
This is what we do, said Tim Wiles: “We make things. We provide energy for the state, food for our families, and businesses are sustained around the county because they make money from us.”
The 54-year-old miner added, after listening to Romney, “This election is his and Paul Ryan’s for the taking. They need to be bold and remind people of what we stand for, that we are the backbone of this country.”
“America still is that competitive frontier,” said Josh Kinney, 32, standing beside him.
Energy issues have played a large part in driving dissatisfaction with President Obama in Ohio. For some, it is an economic issue; jobs are at stake. However, for even more folks, oil and coal are priorities and values.
“Ohioans think of themselves as explorers and inventors,” said Curt Nichols, a Baylor University political science professor. “And they have come to question the priorities of decision-makers in Washington when they aren't allowed to reap the natural harvest under their feet.”
How much of this dissatisfaction can be turned into votes for Romney depends on how well Romney can establish himself as the champion of these swing voters.
They want to know, will Romney fight for them? And, if they place their faith in him, is he going to be a winner?
How important is Ohio? If money is any indicator, both campaigns have spent small fortunes on political ads in the state this summer.
Ohio has voted for the winner of every presidential election since World War II except in 1960, when it chose Richard Nixon over Jack Kennedy. It is the quintessential bellwether state, earning the motto, "As goes Ohio, so goes the nation."
Nichols said many analysts believe Romney cannot win the election without carrying Ohio, “a state George W. Bush won only by about 200,000 votes in 2004.”
Democrats find their strongest support in Ohio along Lake Erie – basically, from Toledo to Cuyahoga County and Cleveland. Republicans maintain a stronghold in the Cleveland suburbs of Geauga County.
Democrats also are strong along the Pennsylvania border around Youngstown. And they recently turned Columbus into a blue island in the red sea of central and western Ohio, where Republican support is the strongest.
“The energy-rich hills of southeastern Ohio are traditionally competitive grounds for both parties,” Nichols said.
U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson is a Republican representing the 6th Congressional district that makes up most of that southeastern Ohio territory that has been held historically by larger-than-life Democrats such as former congressman and governor Ted Strickland.
According to Johnson, the region is swinging strongly for Republicans this time.
“They are unhappy and disconnected by the policies of the president,” he said of voters there.
He points to the health-care law and the stealth cap-and-trade regulations on the coal and natural gas industries – issues on which he won a surprise victory over then-congressman Charlie Wilson in 2010 – as still fierce motivators to vote Republican.
Romney will not be able to simply rely on such extreme dissatisfaction to drive swing voters into his camp. Ohio voters are dissatisfied enough with Obama to cost him the state; however, they are not yet sold sufficiently on Romney to indicate to pollsters whether they will make the switch in November.
In short, a bad economy has provided Romney the opportunity to upset Obama. Now, he has to seize it.
To do so, Romney must find a way to connect with working men and women of America, said Nichols.
“He cannot rely on economics or policy disagreements to drive dissatisfaction,” he explained. “Rather, Romney must exude the kind of command presence and confidence that converts potential supporters into followers.”
His conclusion: If Romney and his running mate, Congressman Paul Ryan, “convince the disaffected working folks of Ohio that Romney is going to win, he probably will
Miners actually publicly supporting Romney, eh? Someone on Planet Obama has got to be having a heart attack right about now.
They supported Bush as well.
Miners either support Romney or they support unemployment.
It’s just that simple.
In fact it’s that simple for the whole country.
This is why Zero’s going to lose this election. We have a population out there wanting to work, and not be told by the government that they can’t.
And Ohio was correct in choosing Nixon in 1960. TX and IL electoral votes were stolen for JFK that year by the kind of vote fraud that LBJ and Richard Daley were famous for.
If the GOP doesn’t have safe-guards in place for November, they are too stupid to lead this country.
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To onlookers, mostly press and staffers, the image was stunning.
To the 2,600 family members gathered in the gravel parking lot or under tents, eating hotdogs and drinking pop, it was a moment of immense pride.
This is what we do, said Tim Wiles: “We make things. We provide energy for the state, food for our families, and businesses are sustained around the county because they make money from us.”
The Romney & Ryan campaign should use this in some ads. It's an important part of the "we did build it" truth. Even reading the description of the miners coming up on stage made my heart beat a little faster.
On a related note, I went to a child’s birthday party recently. The host told me that he had trouble getting the balloons for the party because, apparently, helium is being rationed now, due to Obama’s war on domestic energy sources. I guess helium is a byproduct of oil and gas drilling.
Are you kidding? Voters want leatherface on his 8th cup of espresso. Bring out the chainsaw and let him go at the budget.
Am pretty sure helium comes from one source in USA, Amarillo, Texas. Its reported to be getting low. Another source is Russia.
Never heard of stripping helium from natural gas wells, production is run through so many widespread plants (unlike oil refineries) its unlikely if any helium exists the plants have the technology to separate it before the gas goes to homes.
BLM says:
“Helium is commercially recovered from natural gas deposits mostly from Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas. That’s where BLM New Mexico comes in. We operate and maintain the only government helium storage reservoir and pipeline system in the country. The Amarillo Field Office is responsible for the conservation and sale of helium for government use.”
http://www.blm.gov/nm/st/en/prog/energy/helium.html
TX and IL electoral votes were stolen for JFK that year by the kind of vote fraud that LBJ and Richard Daley were famous for.
I just looked at the 1960 electoral map and it looks like a guy named Byrd also screwed up the election. It would have been nice not to ever have Nixon as President. He was like Bush big government...EPA anyone?????
Did not know that. It does makes sense, rather than one big underground deposit.
The thing that bugs me is that the gummint was selling the stuff off.
I am aware of that. I am also aware that the miners and their unions have largely supported the Democrat candidate in the last few Presidential elections. They certainly haven’t gone up on stage with the Republican candidate to express their support.
Voters Want a Champion
_______________________________
You bet we do...
But I’d settle for someone fit to run at this point...
Know anyone ???
Since Richard Nixon actually WON the 1960 Presidential Election, Ohio has an unblemished record. Too bad Democrat Voter Fraud cost Nixon the Presidency as well.
To the Chinese no doubt. What the hey, they pay off Dem politicans very well.
And now they are letting them buy up all the minerals and oil they can all over the world. Obama is making it harder for us to succeed.
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