Monday, October 19, 2020
Businessman Don Blankenship of West Virginia, the U.S. Constitution Party’s 2020 presidential nominee, answered some questions about his campaign from Wikinews accredited reporter William S. Saturn.
Blankenship, reportedly nicknamed the “king of coal”, was chairman and CEO of Massey Energy from 2000 to 2010. During his tenure, the 2010 Upper Big Branch Mine disaster occurred, which resulted in the deaths of 29 miners. A jury convicted Blankenship of misdemeanor conspiracy to violate safety standards willfully, and he received a one year prison sentence in 2016. He maintains his innocence and blames federal regulators for the disaster. After his release from prison, Blankenship ran unsuccessfully for the Republican Party’s US Senate nomination in West Virginia. He subsequently sought the Constitution Party’s nomination for President. At the virtual 2020 Constitution Party National Convention this past May, Blankenship won the party’s nomination on the second ballot. He selected Michigan Taxpayers Party chairman William Mohr as his running mate. Mohr spoke about Blankenship with Wikinews in June, describing him as “a good man with vast knowledge in the political field [who] stands firm on his positions, aligns well with the party platform and has an abundance of ability to lead this nation in the direction it needs to go.” Mohr lauded Blankenship’s “ability to influence leaders around him” and claimed the nominee “has a backbone superior to most men and will be the strongest President we have seen in decades.”
The Constitution Party was founded in 1991 as the U.S. Taxpayers Party. It changed to its current name in 1999. The party advocates states’ rights, gun rights, limited government, protectionism, and non-interventionism. It strongly opposes abortion and illegal immigration. In 2016, the party’s presidential nominee Darrell Castle received 203,091 votes (0.15 percent) with ballot access in 24 states. The Blankenship-Mohr ticket is on the ballot in 18 states with write-in access in a few others.
With Wikinews, Blankenship discussed his background, the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on his campaign, what a Blankenship presidency would entail, and policy matters. Additionally, he delivered his final plea to voters ahead of Election Day.