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MANCHIN TO KEEP ENERGY GAVEL AFTER DUMPING DEMOCRATIC PARTY

By Timothy Cama | 05/31/2024 01:32 PM EDT

“I have never seen America through a partisan lens,” the West Viriginia senator
said.

West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin at the Capitol earlier this month. He announced
Friday he's leaving the Democratic Party. Francis Chung/POLITICO

West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin left the Democratic Party on Friday and
registered as an independent, further cementing his yearslong fallout with the
party.

Manchin announced in a statement that he changed his voting registration to have
no party affiliation at West Virginia’s State Capitol in Charleston, along with
a photo of him holding what appears to be a registration form.

“I have never seen America through a partisan lens,” he said in a statement
announcing the switch.

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Manchin plans to stay in the Senate Democratic Caucus, however, and keep his
positions there, including as chair of the Energy and Natural Resources
Committee. He is also a member of Democratic leadership, as a vice chair of the
caucus’s Policy and Communications Committee. Charlotte Laracy, a spokesperson
for Manchin, said he “will continue to caucus with Democrats.”

The change comes as Manchin has repeatedly clashed with President Joe Biden —
and his former Democratic colleagues — over a host of matters, most prominently
implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act, Democrats’ landmark climate law.
Manchin has also joined Republicans on numerous votes seeking to overturn Biden
administration’s energy and climate actions.

The switch to independent could have implications for Manchin’s political
future. He said last year he wouldn’t run for reelection and didn’t run in the
Democratic primary this month for his Senate seat or for governor.

But he has considered running as an independent for the Senate and has
reportedly faced pressure to run for governor. The registration keeps his
options open for an independent run for either office. Both races are in
November.

Manchin said in his Friday statement that since joining the Senate in 2010, “I
have seen both the Democrat and Republican parties leave West Virginia and our
country behind for partisan extremism while jeopardizing our democracy.”

He added: “Today, our national politics are broken and neither party is willing
to compromise to find common ground. To stay true to myself and remain committed
to put country before party, I have decided to register as an independent with
no party affiliation and continue to fight for America’s sensible majority.”

Manchin has previously brushed away suggestions that he might run for Senate or
governor as an independent, though he has not ruled out a run.

He told reporters this month that he’s an ally of Steve Williams, the mayor of
Huntington and the Democratic nominee for governor, who faces long odds against
Patrick Morrisey, the Republican nominee.

“Steve Williams is a friend of mine. We’ve known each other for 40 years. I
contributed to his campaign, I encouraged him to run,” he said May 20. “I don’t
know where this is coming from, so I can’t really say anything.”

The statement came after West Virginia MetroNews reported that Republicans
opposed to Morrisey, the state’s attorney general, were pushing Manchin to jump
into the race. Morrisey came out ahead in a bruising GOP primary against former
state lawmaker Moore Capito and businessman Chris Miller.

Manchin has also mostly dismissed the concept of running as an independent for
Senate but has not ruled it out, CNN reported.

He endorsed Glenn Elliott, the mayor of Wheeling, in the Democratic primary,
although he has not made an explicit endorsement in the general election. Jim
Justice, the current Republican governor, is favored to easily win the race.

Manchin has until Aug. 1 to file for either race as an independent.

CLIMATE LAW WRANGLING

Manchin has led the Energy and Natural Resources Committee since Democrats took
the Senate majority in 2021.

While his vocal support for mining, coal and other fossil fuels has often
angered Democrats, he’s been an ally on matters like conservation and some clean
energy policies.

He also was a lead author of the IRA, the 2022 law that included $369 billion of
spending for climate change and clean energy, the largest climate measure in the
nation’s history.

But since that law has gone into effect, Manchin has been critical of many of
the Biden administration’s actions to implement it — and threatened to join GOP
efforts to repeal it.

Manchin has argued it has been too favorable to clean energy at the expense of
fossil fuels and domestic energy. He has also clashed with Democrats on other
major issues, such as taxation and immigration.

Manchin has been a Democrat since his first run for West Virginia’s House of
Delegates in 1982. He lost that bid but won a state Senate election in 1986. He
was later governor from 2005 to 2010.

While the Democratic Party was dominant in West Virginia at the time and
Manchin’s centrist and conservative positions were welcome there, the state has
since moved dramatically toward Republicans, who hold all major state offices
and all but a handful of legislative seats.

The national Democratic Party has also united in more liberal positions in that
time, including on issues around environmental policy.

The Senate’s other three independents, Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.), Bernie Sanders
(Vt.) and Angus King (Maine), all caucus with Democrats and some hold leadership
positions. Sinema was a Democrat until 2022 and was allowed to keep her spots.

Reporter Garrett Downs contributed.


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