Editorial, Fairmont Times West Virginian
By a unanimous vote of the TWV Editorial Board, 14-term Congressman Alan B. Mollohan is the clear choice as the Democratic candidate based on a solid career of political service that has earned him a number of critical leadership positions in Congress - most notably that of the third ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee. With the announcement Wednesday that Rep. David Obey, the current Appropriations chair, will retire at the end of this term, Mollohan, if re-elected, would rise to the number two position in Appropriations.
Voters in West Virginia need look no further than the accomplishments of Sen. Robert C. Byrd to realize what a powerful position that an Appropriations leadership position can be. Certainly, Mollohan has modeled himself to some degree after Sen. Byrd in this manner.
Alan Mollohan's record of economic development in the 1st Congressional District is unparalleled in terms of his vision, his ability to create private-public partnerships, especially in high tech, and his leadership that enabled him to steer millions of dollars in federal earmarks to diversify the economy in North Central West Virginia.
Following Sen. Byrd's success in relocating the FBI fingerprint facility and its 3,000-plus jobs to the region, Mollohan has followed suit by enticing other federal agencies such as NASA, NOAA, the National Energy Technology Lab and the Department of Defense Biometrics Center to locate along the I-79 Corridor.
Mollohan was instrumental in the creation of the West Virginia High Technology Consortium that has served as a hightech business incubator that currently employs more than 1,300 people- with hundreds more to come within the next year. As a result, the high-tech sector has attracted over 200 high-tech firms to the region that did not exist a little more than a decade ago.
Certainly Congressman Mollohan deserves much of the credit for transforming our economy from one dependent on extraction and manufacturing to one that has weathered the current economic recession much better than most. Otherwise, we could have much higher unemployment, foreclosures and permanent job loss than we have suffered. Our economy is still based on energy, but has evolved where health care, high-tech, higher education and government jobs represent an ever-increasing share of our diverse economy.
To those who accuse Mollohan of turning his back on coal during the vote on Cap and Trade, we think that his endorsement by the United Mine Workers speaks volumes as to his commitment to coal. It's much better to remain at the bargaining table and have influence on the final outcome of such policy than it is to create a standoff. In the end, Mollohan voted against Cap and Trade.
Finally, to those who continue to sling mud in an attempt to raise questions regarding Mollohan's ethics even though the Department of Justice closed the case without any formal charges filed against him following a detailed three-year investigation, that speaks for itself. In America, we are innocent until proven guilty - no matter how many times you call someone corrupt. We have great confidence that the Department of Justice completed its mission with professionalism and integrity and Mollohan was exonerated.
