Daily Mail editorial: Chamber meeting shows way forward for GOP

September 9, 2015

West Virginia liberals expended a great deal of energy last week trying to paint the annual meeting of the state Chamber of Commerce as a sinister conclave of elites with an “extreme” agenda.

But judging by what actually went on at the conference — as opposed to in the left’s fevered imaginings — the Chamber’s pro-jobs, pro-education agenda tracks the same common-sense policies the state Republican Party has been openly advancing in recent years, and will continue to push in the next legislative session.

House Speaker Tim Armstead and Senate President Bill Cole signaled that the GOP intends to build on the legal reforms passed last year, specifically by putting in place an intermediate state court of appeals.

That’s a long-overdue step that will bring us in line with the overwhelming majority of American states that provide an intermediate court as an extra layer of judicial review.

Kudos to GOP leaders for recognizing that as important as good laws are, they’re only as effective as the courts charged with enforcing them.

On the education front, Cole sent a strong message to Democrats and teachers unions who have managed to kill charter school bills year after year: The GOP isn’t quitting on this issue.

“Any way that we can get to student achievement we need to do it,” said Cole. “I hope it’s with bipartisan support (but) if it has to be the first one without it, I think it’s important for West Virginia.”

Well-said, Senator. Forty-three other states have charter school laws. It’s time to tell teachers unions and their friends in the Democratic Party they can’t keep thwarting this promising educational innovation.

Legislators also indicated they plan to reintroduce bills on right-to-work, lease integration and income tax reform.

All these measures will be hotly debated in the coming months and during the coming session. But it’s encouraging to hear that GOP legislative leaders are standing firmly behind the same ideals that earned them their legislative majority last fall.

The Chamber’s agenda is “extreme” only to the interests that have been holding this state back for too long. For the GOP — and most of this state’s voters — it’s a sensible path forward.