Green throws hat in ring for second term

By Mannix Porterfield

Vowing to remain a strong voice for West Virginia’s under-siege coal industry, Sen. Mike Green is wasting no time letting the voters of the 9th District know he’s ready to represent their interests with a second term in Charleston.

Green eased into the upper chamber in 2006 with a victory over former Sen. Russ Weeks, a Republican who had stunned politicos across West Virginia four years earlier by upsetting veteran Democratic lawmaker Bill Wooton.

So far, Green, D-Raleigh, a former police officer in his hometown of Beckley, is the lone candidate for the seat, the only one who has filed pre-candidacy papers with the secretary of state’s office.

“This is a time we cannot afford to drop the ball when it concerns the promise of prosperity or demise of our state’s economy,” Green said.

“While I support responsible coal mining practices and clean coal technologies, none of that matters if the federal government and its agencies continue to attack the very base of our state’s economic wealth.”

Of late, Green has embarked on a one-man crusade to alter the thinking of the Environmental Protection Agency with the creation of a Web site, www.supportwvcoal.com.

His idea is to attract 15,000 hits of support from West Virginians, which he plans to hand to the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in November at a Charleston public hearing as a means of easing the brakes on 79 pending coal permits, including 23 in West Virginia.

In less than a week since it surfaced in cyberspace, Green’s site had garnered more than 5,300 messages of support — more than one-third of his goal.

Green impressed the Senate leadership early on, gaining the chairmanship of a key panel — the Energy, Industry and Mining Committee — that is apt to play a vital role with the increased demands on energy output and regulation in the years ahead.

Just this past session, Green’s committee dealt with a number of major energy issues, not the least of which was Gov. Joe Manchin’s energy portfolio.

“It is a pleasure working with Sen. Mike Green,” Manchin said, adding the first-term senator carries “a wealth of knowledge and expertise” to the job.

“He has a get-it-done attitude and truly understands the concerns of the citizens of Raleigh and Wyoming counties. I applaud him for his service, wish him much success and look forward to working with him in the future.”

Green, a real estate developer in southern West Virginia and owner of Premier Construction, also won kudos from Senate President Earl Ray Tomblin, D-Logan, who considers him a “quick study.”

“Since coming to the West Virginia State Senate a few years ago, he has proven that even though he is a relative newcomer to politics, he is anything but ‘green,’” Tomblin said.

“Over the course of my three decades as a member of the Legislature, I have met none which would exceed Mike Green’s ability to immediately grasp the day-to-day operations and true nature of what it is that we do,” Tomblin said.

“I know I can depend upon his word. I always know where he stands and will be standing when the dust settles from enriched debate. That’s why I look forward to continuing to work with him for the good of the state and her people.”

Green’s work in the Senate will produce “handsome dividends” not only for the 9th District but for the long-term outlook in the Senate and the future of West Virginia children, Tomblin added.

Green said he has learned that working with the leadership is the way to deal with issues facing his constituency.

“It is through cooperation and the give-and-take of the political process that long-range goals are being accomplished,” he said.

Besides helping the coal industry face the challenges of now and the future, Green pledged efforts to expand a modern highway system and invest in state parks and recreational needs.

“The reason coal is so important to all of us is because right now it is a critical backbone to industry in West Virginia,” he said.

“Without a strong, vibrant and growing coal industry and no other industry to replace it, West Virginia will lose its leading position as a major energy supplier for the nation.

“Electricity rates will increase dramatically, and our state will not be able to provide a high level of support for students, public schools, transportation and roads, public services and public safety.”

Green is married to the former Kelly Neely of Mullens, and the couple has two children.

— E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com