Some thoughts, one unpleasant to some.

[Blue_true]

15. High level economic development is poison for the modern Republican Party.

Georgia is now a purple state because of economic development around it’s largest cities and Athens. The bluest parts of my state of Florida have big time economic growth going on.

What we should do is push or improve hi speed commuter rail all across Virginia and deep into West Virginia. The government should build state of the art broadband into those areas That would allow educated people to stay and live in those areas, while having access to high paying jobs. We will lose some of those educated people to rightwing lunacy, but my argument is that we retain a large enough number of them to win elections consistently.

West Virginia is a beautiful state, it can support environmental tourism easily, city people getting away for a few days to B&Bs, Inns and conference centers that support their every need, while supplying business opportunities and jobs to locals, and tax revenue to local governments. The climate there is well suited for growing high profit margin produce.

We would need to care economically for miners that are too sick to work, or two old to make retraining practical.

All of the items that I pointed out can also be done and must be done in inner cities, with some changes that are unique to inner cities (like restoring and again using cultural places like old bars, music venues, old theaters, old restaurants, ect. Give business people opportunities, while developing jobs for locals and tax revenue for local governments.