EDITORIAL: The Future of the State for the Next Generation
Politicians in both parties across West Virginia know that family is a consistent theme in every section of the state. Ever since Clyde See launched his tearjerker TV ad in 1984, telling us that he wanted to help our young people to "come home" to West Virginia, many of our state's leaders have picked up on this theme.
Unfortunately, it's a consistently available theme because our high school and college graduates still keep leaving the state in droves, looking for work in places like Cincinnati, Charlotte, and Washington, D.C. They get to see their parents on holidays like Christmas and Mother's Day, and many lose their community ties altogether with the old home place.
"It's West Virginia's enduring sad story, isn't it?" said Huntingtonnews.net chief political analyst Jack Ellis. "Every Governor, every U.S. Senator, every Congressman we've had tells our young people how vital they are to West Virginia's future at Mountaineer Boys' State and the like. But our young people can't find a place to plug in due to the lack of employment options here."
We're sure that Governor Joe Manchin would like to see more young West Virginians live and work in West Virginia, and we don't expect one Governor to turn it all around for our children and grandchildren here. However, the latest recession has hurt young workers more than any other group, and we haven't heard much out of Manchin about it.
Manchin's U.S. Senate opponent, John Raese, has always had a commitment to young people across the state, both in his businesses and in his political efforts. Raese's radio stations oftentimes hire college students, and limestone operations have given thousands of young people that rare opportunity that seems almost like something out of the 1950s: a job with a single company that you stay with out of high school or college for decades.
Raese has also been a chief supporter of Trinity Christian School in Morgantown, a major sponsor of 4-H and FFA Youth Livestock Auctions, and the West Virginia Federation of Young Republicans.
And it bears mentioning that everytime Citizen Raese gave a donation to any of these and other causes for West Virginia's youth, he wasn't giving a government check and acting like it was his money. No, it was a personal gift from his own checking account. If anyone has shown a strong interest in helping give our young people a future right here in West Virginia, it's John Raese.
For this reason, we encourage voters to elect John to the U.S. Senate this November. Raese has never lost touch with the youth of West Virginia, in large part because he seems to still possess the optimism of his own youth, growing up in Morgantown.