WASHINGTON, D.C. — West Virginia U.S. Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito were part of a bipartisan group of senators invited to the White House Thursday for a meeting with President Donald Trump.
Manchin released the following statement shortly after the gathering:
“Today my colleagues and I had a very productive meeting with President Trump. We discussed his Supreme Court nominee Judge Gorsuch, ways we can improve and invest in our infrastructure and fighting the opioid abuse epidemic. I will continue to review Judge Gorsuch’s record, qualifications and his future testimony to determine if I will support him. I look forward to working with President Trump and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to work through this confirmation process and the other issues we discussed today.”
Manchin has spoken with Trump several times since last year’s election including a December meeting at Trump Tower in New York where the two discussed the possible nomination of Manchin as energy secretary. Trump went with former Texas Gov. Rick Perry instead.
Capito, who has already announced her support for Gorsuch, said the meeting was beneficial.
“I was very encouraged by today’s meeting, and I thank President Trump for convening this bipartisan group of senators to discuss issues ranging from the Supreme Court to the opioid epidemic to broadband access,” Capito said in a statement. “I raised the issue of the digital divide that exists in rural America and encouraged the president to include broadband in any infrastructure package. We also discussed solutions for curbing the opioid epidemic and solving problems at the VA, as well as the need to swiftly confirm Judge Gorsuch to the Supreme Court. I look forward to working with the Trump Administration and my colleagues in the Senate to address these issues that are so critical to West Virginia and communities across America.”
Capito met with Judge Gorsuch in her office last week.