West Virginia is the biggest Trump-loving state of them all. From the hollers to the coal mines, they are all about Donald J. "Clean Coal" Trump.
They're also beholden to Big Coal and Big Oil, corporate interests which have purchased the state legislature, impoverished the population, and destroyed the lives of many.
Lissa Lucas is a candidate for the West Virginia House of Delegates. Determined to forge a new path for her state, Lucas is challenging the stranglehold fossil fuel magnates have on her state's legislature.
On Friday, she took that challenge straight to the floor of the legislature, expressing her concerns about H.B. 4268, a bill to expand drilling rights under certain circumstances. She began reading off donors to the Republican fat cats in the room, including Dominion Energy and FirstEnergy, who would stand to benefit from the bill's passage. Lucas obtained all of her information from publicly available databases in the state, and read off the list as fact, but the boys in the room did not like it one bit.
First, she was admonished not to make any personal comments. She countered by telling Republican Delegate John Schott it wasn't personal.
Nay, nay. "It is a personal comment and I’m gonna call you out of order if you talk about individuals on the committee," Schott insisted. "So if you would just address the bill. If not, I’ll ask you to please step down."
Nevertheless, Lucas persisted. She continued to read the list until security came to drag her away.
It's funny how it's the people's house until actual real people show up. Then it's the corporation-as-people's house. Individuals needn't apply.
(h/t The Intercept)
