EXCLUSIVE: Babydog Justice celebrates her sixth birthday in style, demands Schumer end shutdown

“I’ll trade anybody a day’s worth of belly scratches for a vote to open the government," West Virginia's unofficial mascot exclusively told the Washington Reporter.

At a time of seemingly intractable divisions in Washington, D.C., few things seem to be able to bring Democrats and Republicans together. One critical exception happened this week, when Babydog Justice turned 6 years old.

Babydog, the English bulldog that appears to always be by Sen. Jim Justice’s (R., W.Va.) side, was greeted and treated by hundreds of Capitol Hill staff and curious onlookers, as she and her proud owner beamed from his Senate office in Hart.

Just like her owner, Babydog was on message in her exclusive remarks to the Washington Reporter.

“As Chief Happiness Officer of the Senate, it’s my job to bring a smile to people’s faces — especially during a shutdown,” she remarked. “I’ll trade anybody a day’s worth of belly scratches for a vote to open the government!”

For hours, the Justices sat and greeted guests, serving cake pops specially made for the event by a local West Virginia bakery” that featured a smiling dog’s face on each and every one of them. The offerings were so popular that they were rationed as the day’s festivities were winding down.

Some lucky visitors even got to have pieces of a giant cake of Babydog’s likeness; all visitors were encouraged to sign the wallpaper for Babydog to read at her leisure.