Election 2008 Shorts

• Gov. Joe Manchin tells The Associated Press that his Virginia counterpart, Gov. Tim Kaine, believes he's on Barack Obama's short list for running mate. Kaine had gotten no such word directly from the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, however, Manchin said;

• After a failed -- and badly timed -- bid to enlist Secretary of State Betty Ireland to take his place on the ballot, Charles Minimah says he's staying in the race for that office as the Republican nominee, AP reports. MetroNews also has a story;
  

• The GOP's candidate for governor, Russ Weeks, is planning a Sept. 16 fundraiser in his native Raleigh County, The Register-Herald of Beckley reports. The article also touts Weeks' new Web site attacking his Democratic opponent, Manchin.

• (Update) Republican Jay Wolfe brought his campaign against Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., to the Eastern Panhandle, The Journal of Martinsburg reports.
  

Health Care in West Virginia

The health of Mountain State residents came into focus several different ways this week:

• West Virginia ranked 2nd in the nation for obesity (and 1st for diabetes) in the latest report from Trust for America's Health. The Associated Press has a story;

• The state is also bracing for another knock on its Medicaid redesign, AP reports. The Charleston Gazette also details the latest criticisms, this time from Families USA. The "liberal-leaning American non-profit consumer health-care advocacy organization" is calling the state's changes "inherently flawed," The Gazette reports;

• Clinics that provide free medicines to un- and underinsured West Virginians tell AP health care writer Tom Breen that they object to proposed rules that target their pharmacies;

• The Gazette and MetroNews are among those covering the fallout (or lack thereof) to a backlash by bars and clubs against Kanawha County's indoor smoking ban. MetroNews also reports that Harrison County is the latest to adopt such a measure, to take effect Jan. 1.
  

Manchin Predicts Obama Will Pick Va. Gov. for VP

Gov. Joe Manchin told WSAZ-TV that he believes Gov. Tim Kaine of neighboring Virginia will be the running mate of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Manchin, who had spoken to Kaine earlier Wednesday, "indicated that Kaine said he did not know what was going to happen over the next few days," the item said, adding that "Kaine has been mentioned in the media as one of three potential finalists, along with Senators Joe Biden and Evan Bayh."

"Manchin believes Kaine could help Obama win West Virginia, because of the geographic proximity and other similarities between Kaine's state of Virginia and West Virginia," the report said.

The station also has raw video from the interview.

The McCain Family's West Virginia Connection

A recent National Public Radio piece on the "hidden" half-sister of Cindy McCain yielded this tidbit about their father, James Hensley:

Documents show Kathleen Anne Hensley was born to Jim and Mary Jeanne Hensley on Feb. 23, 1943. They had been married for six years when Kathleen was born.

Jim Hensley was a bombardier on a B-17, flying over Europe during World War II.

He was injured and sent to a facility in West Virginia to recuperate. During that time, while still married to Mary Jeanne, Hensley met another woman — Marguerite Smith. Jim divorced Mary Jeanne and married Marguerite in 1945.

Cindy Lou Hensley was born nine years later, in 1954.

Note: the Wikipedia article identifies Cindy McCain's mother as "Marguerite "Smitty" Hensley (née Johnson)."

As for a guess about the Mountain State facility, Wikipedia also says that The Greenbrier resort served as an Army hospital during World War II.

Election 2008 Shorts

• The Republican candidate for the sole seat held by that party on West Virginia's Board of Public Works "wants to withdraw from the race in the hopes that the incumbent will take his place," The Associated Press reports. But Secretary of State Betty Ireland has declined Monday's offer by Charles Minimah, who missed last week's deadline to take his name off the ballot. MetroNews has a report as well.

• The Charleston Daily Mail follows up on last week's review by AP of electoral map projections to ponder whether "victory for Democrat challenger Anne Barth over 2nd District Rep. Shelley Moore Capito could be even tougher to pull off."

Manchin Gets Primetime Slot at Dem Convention (Updated)

Gov. Joe Manchin will address a primetime audience at the upcoming Democratic National Convention, speaking "right before Senator Hillary Clinton and former Virginia Governor Mark Warner," MetroNews reports.

"West Virginia was recently criticized in the national media as being 'an uneducated state,'" the report said. "Manchin says he plans to clear that notion up very quickly during his time in the national political spotlight."

MetroNews also has audio from Manchin's announcement.

U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va. is also slated to speak at the convention.

Update: The Register-Herald of Beckley reports both on West Virginia's delegation to the convention and Rockefeller's speaking slot.

Update II: The Times-West Virginian of Fairmont reports that Manchin is among at least 10 governors on Tuesday's convention schedule. WSAZ-TV reports that Rockefeller is on tap for Wednesday, along with fellow Sens. Joe Biden of Delaware, Evan Bayh of Indiana and John Kerry of Massachusetts.