MORGANTOWN —        As reported in this morning’s Charleston Gazette, West Virginia lost 1,900 jobs in April and May, capping four straight months of job losses.

“It’s clear that the Obama-Tomblin economy has failed West Virginians,” said Bill Maloney. “Whether it’s Lockheed Martin layoffs in Harrison County, RG Steel layoffs in Ohio County or miners losing their jobs in the coal fields, West Virginians are hurting, and Barack Obama and Earl Ray Tomblin are clearly not helping.”

The manufacturing sector lost 400 jobs in May, adding to 70,000 manufacturing jobs that have left the state during Earl Ray Tomblin’s 37 years in elected office. Earlier this year, 10,000 potential West Virginia jobs went instead to Pennsylvania with the loss of the ‘cracker’ plant.

“West Virginia manufacturers have been especially hard-hit in the Obama-Tomblin economy,” Maloney said. “We desperately need tax reform to help attract good-paying manufacturing jobs back to West Virginia, and to help manufacturers who are already here to hire more workers.”

Meanwhile, Tomblin’s deadline for officially announcing his support for President Obama, in accordance with his party’s delegate selection process, comes tomorrow night.

“These jobs numbers make it clear that we can’t afford more of Barack Obama’s economic policies,” Maloney said. “We need a Governor who is going to stand up to Barack Obama and tell him that his ideas are wrong for our state. Earl Ray is clearly afraid to do that. I’m not afraid of Obama and I’m going to do everything I can to defeat him.”

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