WHEELING — West Virginia Sen. Ryan Weld — also a military veteran — doesn’t object to the Trump administration pausing the Operation Allies Welcome program and other programs to assist Afghan immigrants who aided American efforts in their country.

The suspect in the shootings last week of two West Virginia National Guard members, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, had entered the U.S. through the Operation Allies Welcome program.

Weld, R-Brooke, meanwhile, is a former intelligence officer in the Air Force who served in Afghanistan. He joined the Army National Guard in September.

Weld didn’t know either of the guard members victimized in the shootings — Sarah Beckstrom, who died from her injuries, or Andrew Wolfe, who remains in critical condition.

“To call it a tragedy doesn’t even cover it,” Weld

See Full Page