Ralph Northam Tries To Conceal His Anti-Coal Record To Southwest Virginia Voters

During Monday’s Virginia gubernatorial debate in southwest Virginia, Democrat Ralph Northam made a shameless and phony attempt to pander to voters, claiming that he will do everything he can to support the region’s vital coal industry despite his established record of working to undermine it:

RALPH NORTHAM: “I’ve had a lot of discussions with coal miners and the coal industry and coal is very important to the economy in southwest Virginia, I understand that. The demands for steam-related coal are not what they used to be, the demands for metallurgical are actually very good, so I will do everything I can to support the coal industry in Southwest Virginia…”

Northam sang a different tune during an event at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. back in April while he was locked in a divisive primary race against Tom Perriello. In his remarks, Northam revealed his true views on coal, attacking those who claimed they would “bring coal mining back,” saying “that’s not going to happen:”

RALPH NORTHAM: “He told them that he was going to bring coal mining back, for example, that’s not going to happen, it’s not going to happen because it’s an economical issue.”

While Northam had no problem telling voters in Southwest Virginia who are reliant on the benefits of coal production that he’ll do everything he can to “support the coal industry,” in truth he’s already written it off. Perhaps this was why Northam, as the Washington Post reported, “grew visibly uncomfortable” when asked about his support for President Obama’s so-called “Clean Power Plan”, which imposed intense regulations that proved disastrous for Southwest Virginia energy production.

Northam’s phony attempt to conceal his record on coal further shows that he will say and do anything to win an election, even if it means flip-flopping on a key issue, depending on who he’s speaking with at any given moment. Northam can’t be trusted to stand up for all Virginians as governor.