West Virginia and its senators on abortion rights

The Wheeling Alternative

Joe Manchin

Shelley Moore Capito

As a number of searches reveal, Senator Capito, who has sometimes been labelled “pro-choice,” continues to avoid the abortion issue. After the Mississippi law was passed last summer, she has, with the help of West Virginia’s stenographers passing as journalists, been able to avoid expressing her position on abortion laws or explaining her votes to affirm Supreme Court nominees on the basis of their supposed devotion to precedent. Here is WBOY last December:

West Virginia Senator Shelly Moore Capito has not yet released a statement concerning the Mississippi Supreme Court abortion case. However, in February of 2020, she voted to ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

(I cannot find anything more recent.)

Previously, Senator Capito voted to confirm the three Trump nominees who will make-up part of the majority which will overturn Roe v. Wade. During their confirmation hearings, Capito claimed that precedent and checks and balances were important in her votes to confirm. (I wrote about it here. ) On precedent, Capito had this to say about during the Kavanaugh hearings:

As for abortion rights, Capito said it was a topic in her one-on-one discussion with Kavanaugh on July 12.

“The precedent has a heavy weight in making a decision,” she said.

And on checks and balances, Capito said the following during Barrett’s nomination:

“I think you want a thoughtful, impartial set of justice to judge us as policymakers, to judge the president as the executive,” she said Wednesday. “Every check and balance that the court brings to us keeps us from veering too far from what the American people really want.”

Republican senators, Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins, who both stated similar sentiments at the time, have been widely criticized for their original statements. But will any West Virginia reporter even ask Capito about her previous statements? (Note – this is a trick question: when Shelley Moore Capito is involved, there are no reporters involved – only stenographers.)

On "veering too far from what the American people really want." Where do the American people stand on this issue?

On whether voters would be more or less likely to support a candidate who wants to overturn Roe:

And:

What happens in West Virginia if Roe is overturned?

Mountain State Spotlight recently explained the ramifications:

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May 04, 2022

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