West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey launched a new online petition on Wednesday, allowing West Virginians to urge Sen. Joe Manchin to back President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh.
Attorney General Morrisey, who hopes to defeat Sen. Manchin in the 2018 midterm election, said in a statement on Wednesday:
West Virginians are tired of Sen. Manchin’s spineless political calculation and pandering to liberal elites. West Virginia voters were clear in 2016 when they overwhelmingly elected President Trump by more than 40 points, and now they have an opportunity to remind Sen. Manchin to stand with our President and a highly-qualified Supreme Court nominee.
West Virginians can find the online petition here.
After President Trump announced his nomination of Kavanaugh on Monday night, Sen. Manchin said that said he will “evaluate Judge Kavanaugh’s record, legal qualifications, judicial philosophy and particularly, his views on healthcare.”
The West Virginia Democrat then emphasized in his statement that he is concerned about West Virginians with pre-existing conditions and how potential cases on Obamacare and health care may affect those Affordable Care Act (ACA) protections.
The West Virginia The Intelligencer wrote an editorial on Wednesday, calling on Sen. Manchin to confirm Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court.
The Intelligencer wrote that Manchin is taking the “wrong approach” on singling out Kavanaugh’s Obamacare-related cases. The paper contended:
But defending the Constitution — that is, ensuring what the legislative and executive branches of government do is in accordance with the critical safeguard of our liberties — is vital.
…That, not how Kavanaugh may rule on any single issue, ought to be Manchin’s concern. And if he determines the nominee will be an impartial arbiter, Manchin should vote for confirmation.
Other red-state Democrats such as Sens. Jon Tester (D-MT), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Doug Jones (R-MO), and Bill Nelson (D-FL) continue to face increasing from their home states to support Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) predicted that at least “five or six” Senate Democrats will back Kavanaugh if Republicans manage to garner a 50-vote majority in Congress’s upper chamber.
Grassley said, “I think that we can’t count on any Democrats until we get the 50 votes we need, and then we’ll get five or six of them. Otherwise, I don’t think we can count on them.”
“Now is the time to send a clear message to Sen. Manchin: quit the pandering to liberal elites, stand with President Trump, and support the nomination of Judge Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court,” Morrisey added.