Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) finally announced last month that he won't run for reelection, whch is ultimately not a surprising move given that he was likely to lose that seat if he did run, even with the incumbency advantage. That doesn't mean he's quitting politics, though. He's even teased for some time now that he could run for president in 2024. Well, with just a few weeks left in 2023, Manchin is still just teasing a possible presidential run.
Manchin, who is something of a favorite for the Sunday shows, appeared on CNN's "State of the Union," where he and host Jake Tapper talked about a timeline, especially since Manchin, as Tapper mentioned, is going to launch a two-month tour for "politically homeless" voters. Tapper thus asked if a decision could come around March.
"Jake, I haven't said I'm going to run for president. I have said that, basically, this country doesn't work from the extremes," Manchin made clear, going with a narrative he would bring up throughout the rest of the segment. Regardless as to if he's running for president or not, Manchin has had such a message in mind for months. "You can't have the extreme right and extreme left with all these extreme ideas, and you can't weaponize our system to make--thinking that anybody on the other side that you're not on is your enemy and you treat them as an enemy," he answered in part when responding to Tapper's question about a timeline.
He did speak further to those "politically homeless" voters as well. "The bottom line is, is, America is going to change when the people, when the moderate centrists, people center-right, center-left, people that feel homeless, people that feel helpless that this system, can't anything be any better than this, if they get involved and start demanding more from those who are seeking office, we're going to find out and give them the strength and basically ammunition they need to weaponize--basically stop weaponizing the system and start using the strength they have as a voter," Manchin offered.
Tapper got a more direct answer when he reminded Manchin that he's "just trying to get some sort of timeline." At least he sort of did, which is to say that Manchin has "no timeline." Manchin kept sticking to his pitch when Tapper tried to push him further, even when he just asked him "are you leaning towards running," offering his view that "it sounds like you're leaning towards running."
At least in his next answer, though, Manchin explained why that is he doesn't have a timeline.
"What I would say to any American that feels they have the ability and have the experience and have had that opportunity to see it up close and personal to see the things that are wrong and be able to communicate how changes and what changes need to be made," he offered. "And, with that -- and if you don't put yourself in a position to help your country, then God help you. Why are you involved in public service? And the people that are depending on a representative form of government to truly represent them are not getting represented."
Given how Manchin is retiring from the Senate and what he mentioned in his video announcement at the time, this could indeed suggest he is running for president.
"So, I can't tell you what time frame. I can't tell you if there is a movement or people really care or not. And even if they could work with the--with these candidates that we have right now that have been announced, to let them know that they expect them to make responsible, reasonable decisions, and not weaponizing and calling names and villainizing and this spewing hatred, and making that feel normal, that's not normal," Manchin continued. "Enough's enough, Jake. You can't continue. Words mean something. And they're being used against us," a point he continued to emphasize as Tapper tried to jump in.
Tapper, with his particular phrasing, also revealed what Democrats are worried about, which is to say that Manchin could be a spoiler. "How can a third-party candidate run and actually win, or at least not be a spoiler," he asked.
Polls have been showing that third-party candidates in the race, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., help former and potentially future President Donald Trump in a hypothetical matchup against President Joe Biden. "I mean, do you think that this third-party discussion that you're having, would they try to draw equally from Democrats and Republicans and win with the voters in the middle? Is that the idea," Tapper went on to ask.
Manchin offered that both parties have to reach back out to "the base" that is "the American democracy that we have." As he continued, "the base basically is people in the middle, centrist people that have had to make decisions."
Although Manchin spoke specifically about concerns with the debt, when Tapper moved on to ask about Biden's reelection bid, specifically in how he's losing in battleground states like Michigan and Georgia, Manchin decided to focus on only one part of the question. In addition to asking "how worried" Democrats should be about Biden, Tapper had asked "and do you think it's time for the Democrats to take a serious look at maybe putting somebody else up to run against Donald Trump, assuming he's the nominee?"
Manchin went on to warn again some more about democracy. "Well, I think we all should be concerned about the support that Donald Trump has. And, basically, he's told us who he is. And when a person tells you who they are, you ought to believe him, and tells you what he's going to do. It's not democracy as we know it. It's not how the country has been able to survive through this experiment of ours for over 230-plus years," Manchin claimed.
While Manchin avoided speaking to concerns about Biden's reelection efforts this time, that wasn't always the case. Back in October--before he announced he wasn't running for reelection--Manchin appeared on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," where he was asked if the president should have a primary challenger. Although it took a bit of prodding, Manchin ultimately admitted having a primary challenger "would probably make Joe [Biden] a stronger candidate."
It's also worth reminding that in Manchin's state of West Virginia, Trump won in 2016 with 68.5 percent of the vote and in 2020 with 68.6 percent. What polls are available on the presidential primary for 2024 in the state also show Trump winning by at least 45 points.
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