JOSEPH EARLEY
WHEELING — A candidate with extensive background in the military, technology and cybersecurity is seeking a 2nd District U.S. House seat.
Republican Joseph Earley was in Wheeling Thursday evening for a fundraiser in his honor at the Schwertfeger Shelter at Wheeling Park.
The 2nd District seat is currently held by U.S. Rep. Alex Mooney, R-W.Va., who is running in the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. That leaves the House seat open for 2024. Current State Treasurer Riley Moore also is running in the GOP primary for that House seat.
Earley said issues pertaining to equity, diversity and inclusion and critical race theory are “different aspects of what I call an asymmetrical war against our culture.”
“I’m not going to be distracted by something over here, when I need to stay focused on the root cause of what our society is facing,” he continued. “It has been overrun by communist and socialist insurgency.
“That is what we have to focus on in getting back to — good, basic American values; looking at our constitution; and making decisions based on the constitutional principles of national sovereignty, liberty and freedom.”
The issue of national sovereignty is especially important as America’s southern borders are open to illegal immigrants, according to Earley. He said there have been reports of “terrorists” and “others on watchlists” entering the country.
He blames Biden administration policies for issues at the border.
Earley resides in Bridgeport, West Virginia, where he works within the technology corridor in nearby Fairmont.
He serves as a cybersecurity engineering professional, and has international skill certifications as an AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CCP), an ICS2 Certified Information System Security Professional (CISSP), and a PMI Project Management Professional (PMP).
Earley holds a master of science degree in technology management, with emphasis on information security, from Marshall University. He also has a bachelor of science degree in occupational training and development from the University of Louisville.
Earley entered the U.S. Army as an armor crewman in 1982.
But prior to joining the military, Earley already had an extensive technical background. He entered the adult workforce as a tradesman of drafting and surveying at the age of 17 years old and worked on survey crews for several Charleston-based engineering firms.
Earley retired from military service in January 2002.
“Our country is not in the same place it was when I left the military,” he said. “Over the last several decades since I retired, it slowly degraded from what I remember – and I what I used to protect and serve.”
Upon leaving the military, Earley planned to return to West Virginia and set himself up for future retirement.
“But something hit me back in November (of 2020), and the election interference, how society has degraded,” he continued. “I just feel that with my background as a military person, the kind of things I learned in the military, set me up to do this. I served my country. And I want to come back and serve it again, basically.”
Earley said he has the “intestinal fortitude” and necessary skills to serve in the U.S. House.
“I have had skin in the game for this country, and I’m not a career politician,” he said. “Career politicians are what is wrong with this country. Bringing in a legacy family of career politicians back into the helm of West Virginia for decisions that affect West Virginians is not the best place we want to be.
“From talking with other West Virginians, they want a free and clear slate, and they want choice in their elections,” Earley said.
