WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito said Friday she planned to vote in favor of the changes the U.S. House made to the government funding bill that included $5 billion for a border wall in hopes of avoiding a partial government shutdown.
“I’m just in a state of flux. I don’t know. I don’t want to shut the government down. I’ve lived through government shutdowns and it’s misery path for a lot of people,” Capito said during an interview on WEPM Radio in Martinsburg Friday morning.
President Donald Trump said Friday afternoon the chances for a shutdown were “probably very good.”
Capito flew home to Charleston Thursday thinking the House would agree with the Senate on a continuing resolution for government funding through early February but instead the House added the border wall funding. She and fellow U.S. Senator Joe Manchin flew back to Washington on the same plane from Charleston Friday morning.
Capito said she’ll vote for the resolution but added it probably won’t pass the Senate.
“Considering we have to get to 60 votes–I don’t see it being a bipartisan exercise at all and so we’re going to fall short here,” Capito said.
The Senate was taking procedural votes early Friday afternoon on the spending measure.
Capito said she’s hopeful President Trump will take another look at the border security bill that passed the subcommittee she chairs in the Senate that would provide $1.6 billion in border security funding but she said she understands the move by House Republicans with their majority numbers just days away from vanishing.
“I think that was obviously what the House was pushing with the President’s support because I think when the House takes over Jan. 3 it’s going to be a whole different ball game,” Capito said.
U.S. Attorney for Southern West Virginia Mike Stuart told MetroNews he spent most of Thursday and Friday preparing for a possible shutdown.
“I’m in the process of trying to declare which employees are essential and non-essential and having an orderly shutdown for as long as that may or may not occur,” he said.
Nothing in terms of public safety will be compromised, Stuart said.
“Basic law enforcement functions will continue without delay,” he said. “All law enforcement functions are going to go on as they need to until the public is incredibly safe.”