West Virginia Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito Issues Statement on Voting for Gun Control

June 22, 2022

Mountaineer News

WASHINGTON - Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R) joined 13 of her GOP colleagues to vote for a motion to “proceed to the consideration of legislation to address gun violence in America.”

This means the bipartisan package will advance to discussion on the floor of the Senate. All 50 Democrats voted to advance the proposal.

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has already expressed his support for the content of the proposal, which covers several areas of mental health issues and school safety, but steers clear of any major controversial gun control measures.

“The tragedies that have impacted far too many of our communities deserves all of our attention,” Capito said in a statement after her vote Tuesday evening. “That’s why I have encouraged the bipartisan discussions to come up with commonsense legislative proposals that have the potential to help prevent these terrible events from happening in the future. I have also been adamant that the proposals put forth must not infringe on law-abiding citizens’ second amendment rights.”

Capito said the debate on the Senate floor is needed because something must be done.

“My vote this evening is a vote to continue this critically important debate because it’s a debate worth having,” she said. “My vote also recognizes the hard work my colleagues have done on the framework. Increasing funding for mental health services, school safety initiatives, and in our background check system, are all worthwhile. This bill is not about issues such as red flag laws, which will never be enacted in our state. This bill is about addressing issues such as mental health. It is also about keeping law abiding and gun owning West Virginians safe.”

She elaborated via her official Twitter account earlier this evening:

This is a breaking story. We'll keep you informed as more develops.