CHARLESTON — West Virginia’s senior U.S. Senator-in-waiting and Republican Senate leaders announced their support Tuesday for a short-term solution passed Tuesday by the U.S. House of Representatives to keep the government funded into the beginning of the new year.
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and other members of the Senate Republican leadership held a live-streamed press conference Tuesday afternoon from the U.S. Capitol.
Capito, the vice chairwoman of the Senate Republican Conference, said she supports a two-step continuing resolution to fund the federal government past Saturday’s midnight deadline when the government would run out of money.
“I believe it will get a good vote. I’m certainly going to support it and give us a little bit more time to … get more regular order through our appropriations process,” Capito said.
The House of Representatives passed a two-step continuing resolution offered by the new House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., 336-95 on Tuesday. The plan would fund some parts of the federal government through Jan. 19 and other federal agencies through Feb. 2.
While initially thought to be a hard no from Democratic lawmakers, the proposal appears to have support of both Senate party leaders.
Capito’s importance in the Senate is set to increase following the retirement of Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., following the end of his second six-year term at the end of 2024.
“I’m the senior Senator from West Virginia in waiting,” Capito said.
Capito ended her comments Tuesday hopeful that a short-term government funding solution can be reached before the Saturday deadline and before next week’s Thanksgiving break.
“We’re coming up on Thanksgiving,” Capito said. “I think when we see all the turmoil and we talk about it, we see the pictures and the … dramatic events going around the country, I think now is the time for us as Americans to really be grateful and thankful for all the things in our lives. We have so much in this country that sometimes we forget to focus on that.”