Opinion

Was Tomblin’s trip abroad really a good idea?

An editorial from The Exponent Telegram

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. —

With the state’s current budget woes and Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin coming to the end of his two terms in office, it would be easy to criticize his current nine-day trip to the United Kingdom and Ireland.

And trust us, we were prepared to do just that. As a second-term governor facing layoffs in some departments, a hiring freeze and budget cuts, spending money to travel overseas seems a bit extravagant.

But Tomblin defends the decision and says he expects to have good news from his travels.

“We’re trying to get us more jobs in West Virginia and hoping to get additional investment from those (international companies) in West Virginia,” Tomblin told West Virginia MetroNews.

“You can’t just sit back and wait for people to come to West Virginia,” Tomblin said. “A lot of people don’t know what a good place we are to do business.”

We applaud Tomblin’s efforts to be the state’s top “salesman,” a term that has been used by both candidates trying to replace him in the coming year.

And we understand that people in the U.K. and Ireland may not know much about the Mountain State.

But the timing of the trip is questionable, especially in light of the continuing budget issues, which include the news that the state is already $81 million short in revenue after the first quarter of the fiscal year.

And Tomblin has already racked up some frequent flier miles, as this is his fifth journey overseas, including trips to Japan and Brazil.

So will Tomblin’s last international journey bear fruit in terms of current companies’ expansion or new companies planning to locate here?

We can only hope. He sounds optimistic his trip will make a difference.

“It looks very positive, and we probably should have some announcements in the next few weeks,” Tomblin said.

We hope that’s the case, because we certainly don’t want Tomblin’s legacy to be that of the governor who was busy jet-setting while his state’s economy tanked.

Tomblin has actually managed the state’s business as well as can be expected considering the pounding the coal and natural gas industries have taken of late.

Add in having to lead as the opposite party to a Republican-controlled Legislature, and Tomblin has faced challenges that no Democratic governor has faced in 80-plus years.

We hope he closes out his tenure with great news for West Virginians. If not, this trip will be seen as nothing but a farewell present at a time when the state can ill afford it.

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