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West Virginia Leaders Attend Trump’s Second Inauguration

U.S. Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., attends Monday’s inauguration of President Donald Trump in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. (Photo Provided)

CHARLESTON — West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey and the state’s congressional delegation were in attendance Monday for the second inauguration of President Donald Trump after a four-year gap.

Trump and Vice President JD Vance took the oath of office at noon Monday in an inaugural ceremony moved inside the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol Building due to the extreme temperatures.

Trump’s inauguration ceremony and other inaugural activities were attended by several West Virginia officials. Shelley Moore Capito, the state’s senior Republican U.S. Senator and fourth ranked member of the Senate’s Republican majority leadership, joined Trump and her Senate colleagues Sunday for breakfast at Blair House

“Today, we join the entire nation in congratulating President Trump, Vice President Vance, and the entire incoming administration,” Capito said in a video message released Monday. “It’s also the day that we officially turn the page and begin working to advance solutions that will get our country back on track and benefit all Americans, including those in my state of West Virginia.

“This inauguration day, we do not just celebrate, but we reaffirm the values that have made our country great,” Capito continued. “As we usher in the new Trump administration, we are reminded that the foundation of this country is rooted in the timeless principle of government of, by, and for the people. Today, that message rings a little bit louder in every corner of our great nation.”

Speaking by phone Monday afternoon shortly after the end of the inaugural ceremony, 2nd District Congressman Riley Moore, R-W.Va., said Trump’s remarks perfectly encapsulated why West Virginians continue to support the president.

“I thought this inauguration was wonderful,” Moore said. “It was perfect, and his remarks really just drove home exactly what he was elected on what he ran on and he laid out an agenda that is completely an ‘America First’ agenda very clearly in those remarks. I could not be more thrilled with the way he has laid this out and the way he’s going to conduct this administration.”

West Virginia’s delegation has expressed support for Trump’s southern border policies. Trump announced Monday that he would declare a national emergency at the southern border, reestablish the Remain in Mexico policy for asylum seekers, end catch-and-release policies, send federal troops to the border, and designate drug cartels as terrorist organizations.

“What he’s doing, particularly as relates to the border and securing the border and finally sending the U.S. military, I think there’s a sigh of relief happening right now,” Moore said.

“One point I want to drive home that he made that is huge: designating the cartels foreign terrorist organizations,” Moore continued. “Because that opens them up to a different type of prosecution and I don’t mean criminal: in a military sense and how we can try to stop the flow of drugs and fentanyl into this country. It changes the way that we can go after the cartels.”

New U.S. Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.Va., is a friend of the Trump family who switched his party registration from Democrat to Republican during his first term as governor in 2017.

“Congratulations and welcome back,” Justice said Monday in a social media post. “Looking forward to working with (Trump) to make life better for West Virginians and Americans across the country.”

During Trump’s inaugural speech, he said he would declare a national energy emergency in order to increase domestic energy production, something supported by state and congressional leaders. Trump also said he would undo several policies supported by the administration of outgoing President Joe Biden, including rolling back Green New Deal policies and mandates for “President Trump hit the nail on the head in getting these regulations out of the way that have been hindering us in our ability to be able to extract our God-given resources here in this country,” Moore said. “What I like and what I’ve been talking about is not only the United States being energy independent … but being an energy superpower and net exporter of energy.”

“As co-chair and founder of the Energy Export Caucus, I look forward to working with President Trump to unleash American energy,” said First District Congresswoman Carol Miller, R-W.Va, in a social media post. “America will be energy dominant once again.”

Morrisey and First Lady Denise Morrisey were in Washington, D.C., for the inauguration ceremony and for weekend inaugural events. Trump endorsed Morrisey in the race for governor and was a supporter of Morrisey’s 2018 unsuccessful run for U.S. Senate.

“Today, I join all West Virginians who are excited for this new golden era of American leadership, and I look forward to working with President Trump to build a bright and prosperous future for our state and nation,” Morrisey said in a statement Monday.

In his inauguration last week as West Virginia’s 37th governor, Morrisey said he would work closely with the incoming Trump administration, especially on areas involving energy.

“We are America’s energy state and … we’re going to leverage those resources like you’ve never seen before, and that means partnering with President Donald J. Trump,” Morrisey said Jan. 13. “If ever there was an honorary West Virginian, it should be Donald Trump.”

Trump said he would end federal diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and requirements, restoring policies that would be “color-blind and merit based.” Trump said that federal policy going forward would only recognize two genders: male and female. Morrisey issued a similar executive order last week prohibiting DEI programs by state agencies and prohibiting state funding for DEI programs.

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