Capitol Hill’s New Contender – Justice Vows To Bring Personal Flair To The Role

DEBARYLIFE – Dealmaker and political veteran Joe Manchin from West Virginia once remarked about the US Senate, “This place sucks.” Gov. Jim Justice, the most well-known contender to succeed him, has already declared that he is not very excited about travelling to Washington, D.C. It will have to be done my way.

In West Virginia, where the Republican Party is growing, Democrat Manchin made the decision not to seek reelection this year. Thus, the seat is vacant, and the majority of national analysts predict a Republican will win it.

Justice, a two-term governor, a former Democrat, a businessman, a one-time billionaire, a friend of President Trump, a dog lover, a fast food aficionado, and a homebody, is preferred in polls. Tuesday is the primary election day in West Virginia.

Manchin, who was first elected to the Senate in 2010, is stepping down. Manchin, a centrist, has been an important swing vote in recent years. Manchin, who rose through the ranks of West Virginia’s legislature, enjoyed policy negotiations and was open to having talks about compromise while dining on Italian takeout or on his houseboat, ‘Almost Heaven’.

Manchin told The New York Times that he frequently told colleagues, including Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, “this place sucks,” a direct assessment of dysfunction, as he faced an earlier difficult decision over whether to seek reelection in 2018. After months of conjecture on whether Manchin would seek reelection, he said in November of last year that he would not.

He is vacating the position held by Democratic Senator Robert Byrd for more than 50 years, from 1959 until his passing in 2010. In history, Byrd has continued to serve as the longest-serving U.S. Senator.

Governor Jim Justice, 73, has frequently stated that he doesn’t want to spend a lot of time in Washington, D.C., but he has also stated that he feels compelled to run, which might tip the scales in a Senate that is quite finely divided. Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader of the Senate, and Senator Steve Daines, the head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, have endorsed him.

SEE MORE – West Virginia Voters Confront GOP Candidates Skeptical Of 2020 Election Results

When MetroNews questioned Justice last week about his plans to serve out his whole six-year tenure in the Senate, he responded in the affirmative.

“I sincerely hope so. And possibly six more after that, too,” Justice remarked. I really hope and pray that the good lord grants me life and good health for a very long time since I feel fantastic and I have a lot of energy in what I do. But there are a lot of things up there that we really do need. We require fresh concepts.

Justice continued his remark, saying, “I have no excitement about visiting D.C. It will have to be done my way. It will vary. It will be really distinct. Having stated that, I will stand by my actions. I shall unwaveringly stick to my actions. Furthermore, D.C. need something far different.

For me, it will be different. It will be difficult in every way, but when I first arrived, things were totally different.

After nearly eight years in the governor’s office, Justice was involved in a legal dispute regarding the residency requirements of the state constitution since he continued to live in Lewisburg, two hours away from the capital. In addition to coaching the girls’ basketball team at Greenbrier East, he also desired to coach the boys’ squad.

Usually, in response to criticism, he would say that he preferred being in the crowd rather than behind a desk. Do you want me to receive gold stars for simply sitting there at the mansion? “You want me to follow the previous course of action?” he asked in 2019.

Just after declaring his candidatures for the Senate in April of last year, Justice stated on statewide radio that he would figure out how to adapt to life in and out of the nation’s capital.

“I do have the means to be able to do that, do that very quickly, from the standpoint of being in Washington, going back and forth and everything,” he remarked. “You know, I can travel back and forth and fly my jet a lot. I will undoubtedly have to live there for everything. But we’ll manage to make it all work.

When the basketball season was set to begin in November of last year, MetroNews asked Justice if he was thinking that it might be his final one as coach. He remarked, “I guess we’ll see, won’t we?”

Then, about the Senate race, he declared, “I think we’ll win going away.” “We’ll take a step back and assess the timeliness and other factors. From that perspective, I can definitely come and depart swiftly.

While the Senate does take pauses to allow members to return home, calendars for 2024 already show the chamber meeting most days during the months that comprise basketball season.

A few weeks prior, on March 20, reporter Randy Yohe of West Virginia Public Broadcasting questioned Justice regarding the potential implications of his regular tardiness habit for Senate responsibilities and customs.

“A U.S. Senator must arrive on schedule. It will be debated. Votes will be cast for you. Committee meetings are a must. You’re late, governor, a lot,” Yohe remarked. “How do you respond to voters who express doubts about your time management skills?”

“I can assure you that if a vote needs to be taken and it needs to be taken at a certain time or in a certain way, I always manage to make it,” Justice retorted.

More than a year ago, Virginia senator Shelley Moore Capito, a Republican, supported Justice’s bid for the Senate. Capito conceded this week that Justice might take a different tack than she does in her role as a U.S. Senator.

Throughout the entire process, I’ve spoken with Governor Justice multiple times. Of course, I told him to go for it. We had a lengthy discussion about what it’s like to serve in the US Senate,” stated Capito, who was elected to the Senate in 2015 after initially serving in Congress in 2000.

Capito Shelley Moore

And he has a tremendous desire to serve and contribute to building this nation’s strength and might. He will therefore, in my opinion, be a very useful member. He might handle things his way. He might swing back and forth more than I would. However, I’m not aware of anything that Governor Justice does that he disagrees with in the slightest. So I expect him to serve the same way in the United States Senate and I look forward to having him up here.”

Alex Mooney

Justice’s main Republican challenger is Alex Mooney, a 52-year-old Charles Town resident who has served in Congress since 2015. Before winning the congressional seat, Mooney was a Maryland state senator from 1999 to 2010 and then chairman of Maryland’s Republican Party from 2010 to 2013.

Mooney has been subject of a congressional ethics probe that included allegations about whether a company providing services to his campaign committee provided his family with a free or below-market-value trip to Aruba. Questions also arose about the use of a Washington, D.C. residence, tasks assigned to staff, the use of campaign funds, and possible document tampering.

In the House of Representatives, Mooney is a member of the ultraconservative Freedom Caucus. As right-leaning members of the U.S. Senate have been trying to tilt the balance in their favor, senators like Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ted Cruz of Texas have pushed for Mooney. “He will keep his word that he will faithfully fight to defend the constitution, to defend our nation, to defend freedom,” Cruz said of Mooney at a campaign appearance this month.

Mooney’s campaign, asked by MetroNews if he would commit to serving a full six-year term in the Senate, responded with a straightforward answer.

“I will serve the full six-year term,” Mooney said, “and I will spend every day energetically fighting for West Virginia’s conservative values.”