CHARLESTON – Earlier this year, as Joe Biden became president, another Democrat was being touted as the most powerful man in Washington.
Six months later, West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin is living up to that moniker.
As perhaps the most moderate and centrist of the 50 Democrats in the U.S. Senate, Manchin’s decision could be the determining factor in a number of key votes in the coming months.
Roberts
In these bipartisan times, a perfect example is the vote to eliminate the legislative filibuster – whether the debate centers on a commission to investigate the January 6 incident at the U.S. Capitol, Biden’s infrastructure package or even the Democrats’ election reform law.
If Manchin sticks with the other 49 Democratic Senators, his vote could force a tie. That would mean Vice President Kamala Harris would have to cast the tie-breaking vote.
Rolling Stone calls Manchin “the nation’s most powerful senator” who can “make or break” Biden’s agenda.
In an opinion piece about election reform, MSNBC said Biden’s decision to put the VP in charge of the administration’s push means he “effectively made Harris the ‘U.S. Ambassador to Joe Manchin.’”
But, Manchin also is a Democratic senator representing an overwhelmingly Republican state. And, clearly, he can use his vote as leverage to help benefit his home state.
During a June 1 speech, Biden indirectly referred to Manchin and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) as “two members of the Senate who vote more with my Republican friends.” The same day, CNN posted a story headlined, “Why Senate Republicans are just fine with Joe Manchin calling them every name in the book.”
But, voting records show Manchin and Sinema have voted with the administration 100 percent of the time since Biden took office.
“I think Senator Manchin always has West Virginia’s best interest in the front of his mind,” Steve Robert, president of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, said in a recent interview. “I am not surprised he’s playing such a key role in Washington and is one of the most important lawmakers in the entire country because he is willing to exercise good judgment and independence of thought and will weigh issues on their merits.
“I will say I’m somebody who does not see all of the issues in the same way he does, but I’m being objective in saying he has West Virginia’s interests in the front of his mind. He weighs issues on their merits and not on their partisan attributes.
“And, I think our country really has been hungering for that. We have needed independence. We have needed wise, mature judgment. We’ve needed somebody who does not want to be a rubber stamp for any political party. I think that combination has put him in the position he’s in. Many people in the country are pleased he’s in that position, and we in West Virginians get the benefit of that. I think many people in West Virginia value and appreciate that he wants to do things in a bipartisan way.”
Roberts listed a few examples of how Manchin can help the state.
“I think he has worked to make sure that Cares Act funding came to West Virginia in ways that were most likely to help,” Roberts told The West Virginia Record. “He’s critical in the infrastructure debate. Look at the January 6 Commission study, for example. He keeps saying we need to work to get Republicans on board with this. I also know he has special people in his office working on defense appropriations and how West Virginia manufacturers might participate more in Department of Defense spending.
“I think West Virginians value all of those things.”
Roberts said Manchin approached issues the same way when he was governor.
“And he is, as a senator, operating in a way he did as governor,” Roberts said. “He wants to work with everybody. He wants to get everybody in the room to hear other points of view.”
Roberts said West Virginia is fortunate to have both Manchin and Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito.
“They both tend to approach things that way,” Roberts sad. “Capito has a very similar approach because West Virginians have had to overcome some big problems. But, that type of approach clearly is working in Washington.
And, it has put Manchin in the forefront of many key issues right now. It is exactly what our country needs at this time.”