FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JANUARY 29, 2024
Cecil Roberts: Don Blankenship is not a Democrat, he’s a fraud
[CHARLESTON, W.VA.] Commenting on convicted criminal Don Blankenship’s decision to run for the U.S. Senate as a Democrat, United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) International President Cecil E. Roberts issued the following statement today:
“I have seen a lot of things happen in West Virginia politics over the years, but seeing Don Blankenship file to run for the United States Senate as a Democrat may be the most fraudulent and cynical move I’ve ever seen, and that’s saying a lot.
“Let’s not forget who this is: During his 10 years as CEO of Massey Energy, 52 people were killed at Massey mines, 29 of them all at once on that awful April day at the Upper Big Branch mine in 2010. Blankenship went to federal prison for conspiring to break health and safety laws as a result of that tragedy. His attempts to overturn that conviction have been rejected over and over.
“Don Blankenship does not care about working families. He does not care one second about labor laws, health and safety laws, environmental laws – anything that can help ordinary people improve their lives, he is against it. I don’t agree with the positions Democrats have on several issues, but also don’t know a single Democrat in West Virginia or anywhere else who shares Don Blankenship’s worldview. If he’s a Democrat then I’m Batman.
“I want to be very clear: I have stood up to Don Blankenship and his contempt for working families for 40 years. I will never quit taking him on and telling the truth about who and what he is, and how bad he would be for West Virginia. If he’s on the campaign trail then he can expect to be hearing a lot more from me.”
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