Topline
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said during a radio interview in West Virginia on Thursday that he’s been thinking about leaving the Democratic Party to become an independent “for quite some time,” the strongest statement the senator has made about a possible departure since rumors of a split began swirling during his public conflicts with President Joe Biden and fellow congressional Democrats.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) speaks to a colleague just outside the chamber, at the Capitol in … [+]
Key Facts
Manchin, widely considered the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, made his comments to Hoppy Kercheval of MetroNews, a statewide radio network in West Virginia, where he said he’s “thinking seriously what’s best for” him and that he’s “been thinking about that for quite some time.”
The comments come as Manchin has not ruled out running for president in 2024, potentially on a third-party ticket supported by the No Labels political group, which bills itself as a centrist alternative to the two major parties.
Manchin has said he hasn’t decided whether he’ll run, but raised $1.3 million during the second quarter of 2023 and headlined a No Labels campaign-style event in New Hampshire in July.
The news also comes as Manchin criticizes Biden for his implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act, a climate, healthcare and tax bill Manchin helped write that has been hailed as a hallmark piece of Biden’s agenda.
Key Background
Manchin has gotten into several public scuffles with his colleagues in the Democratic Party, who because they have held such a razor thin majority in the Senate have needed his vote to accomplish many of their most ambitious legislative goals. After months of negotiations in 2022, Manchin forced the Democrats to scale back clean energy provisions, Medicaid expansion, social safety net expansion and other measures in Biden’s cornerstone social and economic legislation, which ultimately passed in a scaled-down form via the Inflation Reduction Act. As part of negotiations, he got to help write the bill. Manchin also joined Republicans to block two of Biden’s key nominations: Neera Tanden, who the president hoped would run the Office of Management and Budget, and Sarah Bloom Raskin, whom he chose to serve on the Federal Reserve. Most recently, Manchin has been publicly critical about the way in which Biden has implemented the Inflation Reduction Act. When asked about whether he will run for president in 2024, Manchin has refused to rule it out, going so far as to say during the No Labels event that, “If I get in the race, I’m gonna win.”
Tangent
If he does leave the Democratic Party and becomes an independent, Manchin will join Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who, during key legislative negotiations in 2022, was the only other senator to hold out the way Manchin did. Sinema left the Democratic Party in December. Alongside her, the only other independents in the Senate are Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine, but both caucus with the Democrats.
What To Watch For
Any announcements on Manchin’s potential presidential campaign, but also on his race for reelection should he remain in the Senate. Manchin is up for reelection in his Senate seat in 2024 and a group of Republicans are hoping to flip his seat, which is one of the most conservative states to elect a Democrat statewide. In the 2020 presidential election, former President Donald Trump won the state by nearly 40 percentage points. Manchin has said he will decide on his political future by the end of the year.
Further Reading
Manchin says he’s ‘been thinking’ about becoming an independent (MetroNews West Virginia)
Joe Manchin Raises $1.3 Million Amid Speculation He Could Run For President (Forbes)
Manchin Leaves Open Possibility Of Leaving Democratic Party And Becoming Independent After Sinema’s Defection (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/willskipworth/2023/08/10/joe-manchin-seriously-considering-becoming-an-independent-as-2024-presidential-bid-still-being-floated/