WASHINGTON — The nation’s largest mining union is slamming a series of new TV advertisements by former Massey Energy executive Don Blankenship as his latest “appalling” attempt to skirt responsibility for the deaths of 29 West Virginia coal miners in 2010. Blankenship was convicted of misdemeanor conspiracy for safety violations that led to the Upper Big Branch disaster and served a year in prison. With their political tone, the advertisements seem to further signal Blankenship’s intent to run against Manchin in the 2018 U.S. Senate race. “Manchin must tell the truth about UBB — for the sake of miners,” one ad concludes. “I would appreciate Senators Manchin and [Shelley Moore] Capito and President [Donald] Trump helping me get answers to these questions,” Thomas says.

Source: Huffington Post September 11, 2017 19:52 UTC