West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey called out one of his gubernatorial primary opponents for “vicious lies” that forced a local TV station to pull an ad from a group tied to Chris Miller.
“Step one in showcasing the lies coming out of the opposition,” Morrisey tweeted Friday. “West Virginia voters aren’t dumb and won’t believe the vicious lies coming from Chris Miller.”
Miller is the son of Rep. Carol Miller, R-W.Va., and he is running for governor against Morrisey and Moore Capito — another son of a U.S. Congress member, Sen. Shelley Capito, R-W.Va. Miller’s father, the husband of Rep. Carol Miller, is running West Virginia Forward.
The alleged “vicious lies” came from a Matt Miller ad campaign alleging Morrisey was cutting backroom deals with lobbyist for gender transition surgeries. A source tied to the Morrisey campaign said Matt Miller’s group could not provide evidence of the claim when pressed.
“Pat Morrisey’s record as a D.C. lobbyist speaks for itself, and stations all over the state are running this ad to show the truth of how Pat sold out to lobby for the trans agenda,” Chris Miller campaign manager Evan Lee told Newsmax in a statement Saturday.
The television ad spending is ramping up before the May 14 GOP primary, but Morrisey is calling out one of his surging opponents amid a reported $1.4 million ad buy from Matt Miller’s PAC.
Emerson College Polling has Morrisey leading the race by a wide margin as of a March 19-21 poll, although a large 29% polled are undecided:
- Morrisey 33%
- Miller 16%
- Capito 14%
- West Virginia Secretary of State Mac Warner 6%
The primary voting period began Friday with absentee ballots having been mailed out, WOAY-TV reported.
Current West Virginia GOP Gov. Jim Justice’s term is ending. He is running for Senate in hopes of flipping the seat of Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., for the GOP.
“Chris Miller says he is an outsider, but he plays politics like the biggest insider,” Morrisey’s campaign senior strategist Jai Chabria wrote in a statement Friday. “Born on third base, Miller was bequeathed with political connections and insider ties that have paid off big.
“Political ads are rarely taken down and it has to be an egregious lie for that to happen. This ad paid for by Chris Miller’s dad is a vicious lie on Patrick Morrisey’s record. We encourage all stations to follow WVVA-Bluefield and take down the ad, as well.”
The alleged “vicious lies” attack at aimed at Morrisey comes after the Club for Growth Action released an ad calling out Chris Miller’s taking COVID-19 relief funding after his mother voted for the bill and subsequently funding his campaign to a similar $3 million amount.
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