WV Gov. Manchin Officially Appoints Former Aide Carte Goodwin To Byrd Senate Seat

Sen.-designate Carte Goodwin (D-WV)
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Gov. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has officially announced the appointment of his former general counsel Carte Goodwin as West Virginia’s new Senator, temporarily filling the vacancy created by the death of Democratic Sen. Robert Byrd.

Manchin opened the press conference by announcing that he had already filed the necessary paperwork with West Virginia Secretary of State Natalie Tennant (D), appointing the 36-year-old Goodwin to the Senate. “He will join the United States Senate as the youngest Senator serving, and it is fitting that he is replacing the most beloved, the most historic figure that the Senate has ever known, and who happened to be the oldest. What a tremendous signal I think that shows of West Virginia, and what an opportunity we have to show that we passed the torch to a new generation.”

It is expected that Goodwin will not seek election in his own right, but instead that Manchin himself will run in a special election to be held this November. Manchin said that the legislature has some final work to do on a bill for holding the election, but that it is almost there after a thorough process. Manchin also thanked the White House, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), and West Virginia’s Sen. Jay Rockefeller (who was himself at the event) for their patience in allowing the process to go through.

Manchin sounded very much like a candidate in waiting, in terms of how he praised Goodwin. “Like me, Carte is someone who always understands the importance of bringing all sides together,” Manchin said. At another point he talked about the need to change the tone in Washington: “It’s about respect. We don’t to have to agree, we don’t have to come from the same background or be going down the same highway if you will, but you have to respect where people are coming from.”

Senator-designate Goodwin then got up to speak. “I have a deep and abiding passion for this state and its people. And in the days, weeks and months ahead, my sole objective will be to make West Virginia proud. And I will have no agenda other than to work hard and fight everyday for West Virginia families,” said Goodwin. He also promised a close working relationship with his senior-Senator-to-be, Jay Rockefeller — for whom Goodwin’s wife Rochelle is also Rockefeller’s state director.

Rockefeller also spoke, underscoring the importance of Goodwin’s swearing-in this Tuesday — when Democrats will then be able to pass an extension of unemployment benefits. “At 2:15, the new Senator from West Virginia, Carte Goodwin, in whom I have vast respect, will be sworn in, in front of the United States Senate and in front of the world. Right after that, because Carte Goodwin will make the 60th vote in what is a very necessary piece of legislation, we will take up and pass unemployment compensation,” said Rockefeller. ” And I think it’s a remarkable symbol of who Carte is, how important the Senate is, and how unimportant the word ‘interim’ is – it does not exist. He is a United States Senator, there have not been more than 1,800 United States Senators in the history of this country, and Carte is the most recent one. He will have all the powers of any other Senator.”

During a brief Q&A, Goodwin was asked about his positions on key issues for the state, such as cap-and-trade: “With regard to cap-and-trade, I will say this: With regards to the Markey bill that passed the House of Representatives and what is pending in the Senate, they simply are not right for West Virginia.”

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