Hoppy Kercheval

Within hours of the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, news stories began popping up about how the attack would impact the election.

That didn’t take long.

Like many Americans, I am still trying to process what happened in Butler on Saturday. In Monday’s commentary and on Talkline Monday, I found myself repeating what a lot of other people are saying—we need to tone down the hostile and apocryphal rhetoric and return to some sense of normalcy.

In 1987, a few folks in Boone County got together to see if they could raise some money to help one of their local students attend West Virginia University. The story goes that ten people put in $100 each and they gave away one $1,000 scholarship. The money also helped buy a trumpet so the student could join the WVU marching band.

National political conventions have evolved into party pep rallies. The only real business is the effort to generate as much positive press as possible. But even by that standard, the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee is shattering expectations.

We think it should be otherwise. After all, we should always aspire to do “the right thing.” But what happens when that decision is the most painful, as I am sure it was for Joe Biden.

West Virginia U.S. Senator Joe Manchin is the latest national leader with strong Democratic ties to call for President Joe Biden to step aside and allow the Democratic Party to choose another nominee. He made the announcement on several of the Sunday morning talk shows. He is also scheduled to appear on Talkline this morning.

Two of the top Republicans in West Virginia have called for President Joe Biden to leave office, either voluntarily or by force.

Justice administration cabinet member Mark Scott resigned recently after the Governor’s office became aware that Scott was simultaneously soliciting funds for a conservative political action committee while working for the state.

The red wave of Republican Party registration continues to wash over West Virginia.