CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Gov. Jim Justice continues to rally from illness, his spokesman said, after a week in which he had to cancel high-profile events such as the introduction of his new chief of staff.
The governor hasn’t appeared in public since last Saturday and concern grew to the point among some lawmakers that there were public expressions of worry.
“Praying for @WVGovernor to recover,” Delegate Gary Howell, R-Mineral, wrote on Twitter. In a similar post on Facebook, Howell responded to a question by saying he’d heard the governor’s illness was serious enough that he’d needed to be treated at Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore.
A program called Flight Aware showed that a twin-jet Cessna registered to Justice Family Farms left Greenbrier Valley Airport at 6:06 p.m. Friday and landed in Baltimore a few minutes later, 6:47 p.m.
The airplane then left Baltimore at 7:06 p.m. Friday, returning to Greenbrier Valley Airport at 9:05 p.m.
Good healthcare is available very close to the governor’s home. The Greenbrier Clinic, at the resort the governor’s family owns, is one of the finest health institutions in West Virginia
Praying for the @WVGovernor to recover
— Del. Gary G. Howell (@71Demon) August 19, 2017
Communications director Butch Antolini described the governor’s illness as a viral infection and declined to say where the governor has been treated. Antolini said the rumor mill about the governor’s condition has been exaggerated beyond his actual symptoms.
“The Governor did have a virus that made him sick. He has been feeling much better the last two days and expects to resume a normal work schedule next week,” Antolini stated, adding that Justice is at home.
“I think some people made far more of this than it really is. People get sick. People get viruses and they just need to run their course. I’ve spoken with him daily, and he is on the mend.”
Justice’s illness has happened at the same time his administration is in transition.
On Aug. 3, the governor announced at a rally for President Donald Trump that he would be switching his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican.
The next day, a Friday, Justice had a news conference at the Capitol to elaborate on the reasons for his party switch and to sign the paperwork. The only visible member of his administration there was Antolini.
That afternoon, Justice administration spokesman Grant Herring, left work and has not returned. Herring came up through national Democratic Party politics. Also leaving was another communications staffer, Marcus Constantino.
One of the administrations’ top lawyers, Joey Garcia, has applied for an ethics exemption to seek work elsewhere. Garcia was a veteran of former Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s administration.
At midday Monday of this week, Justice called his chief of staff, Nick Casey, and fired him. Casey was a former Democratic Party chairman and ran for Congress as a Democrat.
On Tuesday, the administration announced the hiring of state Senate Finance Chairman Mike Hall as the new chief of staff. The administration put out a news release but then canceled a press conference about the chief of staff position that had been planned for 10 a.m. Wednesday.
The administration also postponed an appearance in the Northern Panhandle for the “Jim’s Promise” tour to promote new highways construction and an upcoming road bond vote.
On Thursday, as Justice had to miss an annual Governor’s Day event at the West Virginia State Fair, the administration came out with a statement that included quotes from Justice.
“On Sunday of this week I started feeling under the weather. I consulted with my doctor, had some tests run, and I am being treated for a viral infection. I am now feeling better and on the road to recovery,” Justice stated in that Thursday news release.
“I surely haven’t been on vacation and I never get sick. Therefore, I just didn’t want to be bothering the people with me not feeling well. We had some meetings and events scheduled for this week that unfortunately had to be postponed, and I hate that, but I just had to. Those things will be rescheduled.
“Also, regrettably, I will not be able to attend Governor’s Day at the State Fair today. Again, I am feeling better and expect to be back at full throttle next week.”
The governor’s Twitter account was updated Saturday for the first time in a week, although it has been used sporadically anyway since members of the communications team departed. The update acknowledged federal flood relief funding for disaster victims in northern West Virginia.
Before that, the governor’s most recent tweets expressed reaction to last week’s events in Charlottesville and provided updates from a visit the governor made last Saturday to the State Fair.
With Justice under the weather and no chief of staff yet on duty, deputy chief of staff Jason Pizatella remained on duty at the Capitol through the week. Hall is supposed to begin as chief of staff on Monday.
Honorary Commissioner of Agriculture Devin Price toured the fairgrounds with Comm. Leonhardt & met Gov. Jim Justice! @WVDeptofAg @SFWV2017 pic.twitter.com/aiuzBtvMXh
— WV Dept. of Ag (@WVDeptofAg) August 12, 2017