Two Jefferson County delegates have proposed in House Bill 5477 in the 2026 legislative session that all law enforcement agencies in the state must cooperate with ICE. Jim Bauman argues that this position, given ICE’s brutal history to date of ignoring the basic human rights of people, is not healthy for our communities. The question is why haven’t these elected representatives listened to their constituents?
A brief consideration of the social and political forces that distinguish Democrats from Republicans and the attraction that these established political parties have to Independent voters. Although either party can overreach when it’s in power, the overreach of the Republican party looks to be a threat to democracy itself. It will be interesting in our elections to see how Independents view this threat.
The Republican dominated legislature in West Virginia is trying to undo one of the successful health policy measures in the state. Vaccinations mandated for public school enrollment have largely kept WV from the wave of measles outbreaks in all our surrounding states. Republicans, including all six representing Jefferson County, have voted to weaken this mandate.