CHARLESTON – One Republican candidate for state attorney general is calling on another for “significant input” from personal injury attorneys.
Candidates were required to submit their third quarter financial reports by October 10. Mike Stuart, a state senator and former U.S. attorney, was critical of the contributions of “Democratic personal injury lawyers” to fellow candidate J.B. McCuskey’s campaign.
“This is disgusting,” Stuart said in a press release. “The personal injury lawyers who pumped West Virginians $142 million in opioid settlements are now investing heavily in an attorney general candidate.”
McCuskey
He named some of the lawyers who donated to McCuskey’s campaign, including Marvin Masters, Stephen Skinner and former Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ben Salango.
“And many of West Virginia’s other wealthiest ambulance-chasing Democrats are trying to buy the ‘lock, stock and barrels’ of the attorney general’s office by contributing tens of thousands of dollars to Attorney General J.B. McCuskey’s campaign,” Stuart said.
McCuskey’s campaign did not respond to multiple messages seeking comment. McCuskey is currently the state auditor.
Third-quarter financial records show McCuskey recorded a contribution of $149,425 for the quarter ended Sept. 30 and a campaign balance of $564,689.26. Stuart earned $45,730.60 this quarter, bringing his balance to $127,167.98. Fellow Republican Ryan Weld, a state senator, earned $81,789.56 this quarter and has a balance of $180,106.23. No Democrat has announced plans to run for the office.
“Personal injury lawyers fund J.B. McCuskey,” Stuart said. “Not just personal injury lawyers, but Liberal Democrat personal injury lawyers. They just hit the lottery for $142 million and now they want to kill themselves. McCuskey’s donor list is a Democratic Christmas tree that includes personal injury lawyers and special interests.
“Why are they spending so much money on JB McCuskey? Unfortunately, we all know the answer.
Stuart also said he would “never sell the attorney general’s office to any special interest group.”
“It is time for us to put an end to this type of disgusting behavior,” he said. “I will always take a tough stance and defend our people, not wealthy ambulance drivers, and I will always fight corruption. …I hate corruption. This is a cancer of our citizens’ trust in good government,
“These Democratic personal injury lawyers are terrified that I will win. They’re desperate to find someone to beat me, and they’ll bring a lot of cash to do whatever they can to beat me. They’re afraid of me because I’m not being “bought and sold,” and certainly not by Democrat personal injury lawyers.
“I have fought corruption. My only loyalty is to the people of West Virginia.
Stuart is also calling for a full review of the state’s Child Protective Services program, saying the state Department of Health and Human Resources should provide full disclosure and transparency following the Sissonville case in which two children were found locked in a barn earlier this month.
“Call it an intense review or investigation. It is time for West Virginians to have a clear understanding of what Child Protective Services does so that we can restore trust in this agency,” Stuart said. “We need to understand whether the challenges facing CPS are just human resources and funding issues, or whether we have more troubling systemic issues.
“Adding more resources and more workers to a broken system will only create a larger system that will remain severely damaged.”
