CHARLESTON – It’s Round Two in the war of words between West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice and Attorney General Patrick Morrisey.
Last week, the two Republicans had a public disagreement regarding the governor’s November 13 updated mask mandate that requires citizens to wear a face covering in all public buildings at all times whether or not social distancing can be observed.
During his November 18 COVID press briefing, Justice again stressed he thinks the revised mask mandate will help. He also said he would consider calling the state Legislature into special session if necessary to add criminal charges for failure to wear masks in public buildings.
Morrisey
Later in the day, Morrisey made a social media post about how the governor does not “have the right to legislate or deem criminal charges on people.” And then that evening, the governor’s office issued a statement saying he was “saddened” by Morrisey’s post.
Well, the back-and-forth continued November 23.
During his COVID-19 press briefing, Justice was asked about the situation with Morrisey.
“I was damn disappointed,” Justice said after noting that he and Morrisey are friends and will remain so. “That’s all there is to it. There’s no other way to say it. I have supported Patrick and the Attorney General in every way I possibly can, and I think it’s a crying shame he may have overlooked the severity of this situation. Dividing us is basically what we’re really talking about here. That’s the last thing we need to be doing right now. Especially when almost 90 percent – or maybe even greater than that – 90 percent of the people out there believe we ought to be wearing our masks.
“It has nothing to do with our constitutional liberties. It has nothing to do with taking our guns or whatever it may be. It has one thing and only one thing to do with. If you want to walk over a cliff yourself, well more power to you. But you can’t be doing something that could possibly cause a lot of harm to others and just do it because per se it’s your liberty. What is the difference between driving drunk and saying, ‘Well, that’s my liberty.’ Or driving down the road at 150 mph because you can’t read the signs.
“We’re a nation of laws. I’m not trying to infringe on anyone, but in this situation right now, this mask is the only thing I got. This is all I got to try to help stop this.”
Justice said the government is funding testing “on almost every corner.”
“And to just say, well people can do whatever they want or whatever it may be … it’s not wise,” Justice continued. “It’s not wise to try to divide us. But honestly, it came off to me as degrading to our police. … They know how to handle people. There’s not police running through the neighborhoods throwing people in jail. Do you think I’d be for that? There’s no way on this planet I’d be for that.”
Justice said the bottom line is “simple as mud.”
“Are you going to listen to politicians or are you going to listen to the experts?” he asked. “You going to listen to politicians or are you going to listen to the medical experts? If this (Morrisey’s comments) didn’t have politics smell all over it, then I don’t know my name. That’s just all there is to it. All it does is divide us. In playing to some political deal. I’m not going to listen to politicians. I’m going to listen to the experts.”
Morrisey issued a statement hours later titled, "Attorney General Morrisey Reaffirms Support for Public Health Precautions, Opposes Threats of Heavy-Handed Penalties."
“No one is having a dispute about whether we should wear masks and take all precautions possible to stop this deadly virus,” the AG said. “I encourage our citizens to take such precautions. Anyone suggesting otherwise is not being honest with you. As I said on November 18, we should all ‘socially distance, wear coverings, keep good hygiene, minimize personal contact, and stay away from immunocompromised individuals, who may be particularly susceptible to the virus.’
“We need to both protect the public health and our constitutional rights. I believe in West Virginians and have faith that our citizens don’t need threats of jail time to convince them to do the right thing and pull together to tackle this virus. Heavy-handed threats of criminal penalties are not the way forward, especially through an executive order that the Legislature has not approved.”
In his November 18 Facebook post, Morrisey said he agreed with Justice about imposing the updated mask mandate and wanted to “elaborate further on this issue.”
“As your Attorney General, we speak for the state on criminal matters at the appellate level and handle all criminal appeals at the (state) Supreme Court and in the federal courts,” Morrisey’s post stated. “We also speak for the legal interests of the people of West Virginia.
“During this pandemic, I will continue to ensure that any efforts to use the criminal code for any purpose are not applied in an arbitrary, improper, or heavy-handed manner. Let’s be clear: no one is going to send people to jail and that simply should not be occurring with respect to the governor’s executive orders.”
Morisey noted that early in the pandemic, his office was asked about seeking court action against a Berkeley County barbershop owner who refused to close despite an executive order calling him to do so. Morrisey said such a move would have been government overreach.
“We will continue to weigh in similarly if such a fact pattern arises again,” Morrisey posted. “Significantly, our office will utilize its criminal appellate enforcement discretion to ensure that no one impinges upon our constitutionally protected freedoms.”
Later in the evening, the governor’s office issued a statement about Morrisey’s post.
“I was saddened this evening to see the statement that Attorney General Morrisey posted to his Facebook,” Justice said. “With the overwhelming majority of West Virginians in favor of wearing masks, it is extremely disheartening that he doesn’t also strongly support the wearing of masks, especially after all our medical experts on a state and federal level have made it abundantly clear that wearing a mask works to stop this virus.
“West Virginians have entrusted me to make the right decisions in the best interest of our health and prosperity. I will work tirelessly to keep our businesses open, our people working, and our schools open. Wearing our masks, while inconvenient, will help. I consider it an honor to be in this position. I have always done what I believe in my heart is best for all West Virginians and I promise you I will not stop until we stop this pandemic.”
But in his post, Morrisey did say mask wearing and other measures are important.
“This is a serious virus and everyone must do their part to protect the public,” Morrisey wrote in his Facebook post. “Socially distance, wear coverings, keep good hygiene, minimize personal contact, and stay away from immunocompromised individuals, who may be particularly susceptible to the virus.
“We cannot and must not shut down our state — we must protect the public health while staying open. Act responsibly and know we will use our constitutional authority to protect your freedoms and the due process you are afforded to the fullest extent the law allows.”
And later in a Twitter comment regarding the back-and-forth, Morrisey downplayed the idea of a feud between him and Justice.
"No squabble," Morrisey wrote in a Twitter reply. "Greatly respect the Gov. As the post says, we agree with the Governor who is working hard to protect WV. He has a very tough job. Just weighing in on the AG’s role in the equation."
Justice and Morrisey both recently won re-election for another four-year term.