Alan Mollohan: Target of a Jacksonian Belt Revolt?
Will Congressman Alan Mollohan (D-$$) be the victim of not only ethics probe, but also A Jacksonian Republican sweep?
Michael Barone, Washinton Examiner:
Arkansas 2 is part of what I call the Jacksonian belt, the swath of counties from southwestern Pennsylvania along the Appalachian chain and extending to Oklahoma and Texas which were largely settled by the Scots-Irish immigrants that streamed into America in the dozen years before the Revolution and their descendants. Their great hero, and the son of Scots-Irish immigrants himself, was Andrew Jackson, the victor of Horseshoe Bend and New Orleans, who set about removing Indians from much of this territory and was the founder of the Democratic party. In 2008 voters in the Jacksonian belt voted heavily against Barack Obama in both the Democratic primaries and the general election, as you can see on these national maps and by clicking on individual states to see the county-by-county returns. This map showing the counties which cast a higher percentage of votes for John McCain in 2008 than for George W. Bush in 2004 is essentially a map of the Jacksonian belt.
Mollohan’s WV-1 district is in what Barone calls ‘The Jacksonian Belt’. First elected in 1982 to a seat held by his father, Mollohan has only faced major party opposition in a few of his election bids since then.
According to documents filed with the Secretary of State’s office, by the end of September four Republicans had filed pre-candidacy paperwork announcing plans to challenge Mollohan, who was first elected in 1982.
State Sen. Clark Barnes, R-Randolph, has also said he’s considering a challenge to Mollohan, although Barnes hasn’t filed paperwork yet.
[...] A Jacksonian Republican sweep? from Michael Barone. MORE: Alan Mollohan: Target of a Jacksonian Belt Revolt? MORE STILL: Will the hillbillies flip the [...]