You’ve heard many reports about the crash involving a train carrying a number of Republican members of Congress yesterday. That train was on its way to a retreat in West Virginia. Now that the legislators have arrived, here is what is going on.
White Sulphur Springs, W. Va.–Congressional Republicans’ annual planning retreat at the Greenbrier resort in West Virginia began on Wednesday, the day after President Donald Trump gave his first State of the Union address, highlighting the successes of his administration’s first year in office. The feeling of success was hampered by an Amtrak accident involving the train that carried many members. Even so, Vice President Mike Pence, who addressed the members before dinner, sought to rally the party heading into the 2018 midterm races, stressing the many successes the administration had accomplished during its first year in office.
“It is an honor to see writ large the partnership we have formed together, a partnership between Republican majorities in the House and Senate and the president, who have delivered real results for the American people,” Pence told the members.
Among the legislative accomplishments of the Republican majorities in both houses, he listed the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, record numbers of appeals court confirmations, increases in defense reauthorization spending, and large decreases in regulation.