Yesterday, West Virginia Republican Attorney General “Pain Pill Pat” Morrisey and Democratic candidate Sam Brown Petsonk finally faced off in West Virginia’s only AG debate. As expected, Morrisey continued to mislead the public and leave West Virginia voters in the dark. Here’s a bit of what you missed:

• Pain Pill Pat LIED when he said no one expects the entire Affordable Care Act to be overturned. The problem? Morrisey is at the Supreme Court right now working to do just that. The repeal lawsuit Morrisey is championing will strip health care away from 200,000 West Virginians along with protections for 716,400 people in the state living with pre-existing conditions, including black-lung disease, asthma and cancer.
• Pain Pill Pat REFUSED to answer to his tragic failures in fighting the opioid epidemic in West Virginia. Maybe it’s because upon leaving his job as a career pharmaceutical lobbyist and assuming the role of AG, he’s hesitant to prosecute the very same people who once had him on payroll. That explains why he only secured weak settlements for the state, refused to cut ties with Big Pharma and continues to take money from the same opioid suppliers responsible for funneling the addictive drugs all throughout the Mountain State.
• Pain Pill Pat DEFLECTED when he suggested Petsonk hasn’t been a lawyer long enough to lead the people of West Virginia. The truth? Petsonk, a 9^th generation West Virginian, has been a lawyer in the state for years and has fought for the working-class people in West Virginia that Pain Pill Pat has left behind. Not to mention that Morrisey, a New Jersey native and career pharmaceutical lobbyist, wasn’t even licensed to practice in West Virginia when he ran for Attorney General.

“Yesterday, Pain Pill Pat got on the debate stage and regurgitated the same lies he’s been telling West Virginians for the past eight years,” said DAGA Deputy Political Director Manfred Mecoy. “No matter how many times he attempts to mislead voters, West Virginians know he is actively suing to cut health care for his constituents, gut protections for pre-existing conditions, and enrich his Big Pharma buddies at the expense of the hard-working people. West Virginians deserve an AG who they can trust will fight for them, and that leader is Sam Brown Petsonk.”