Sen. Joe Manchin’s contemplation of a third-party presidential bid after announcing his Senate retirement is causing concern among Democratic senators, who fear the move could harm President Biden’s reelection chances and potentially lead to a second term for Donald Trump.
Despite warnings, Manchin has not ruled out the possibility and insists that he could mobilize a moderate majority of voters.
“I will do anything I can to help my country,” Manchin said.
“I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure, to mobilize that moderate, sensible, common-sense middle,” he pressed.
While some strategists believe he could sway the 2024 race, others doubt his chances and anticipate strong opposition if he gains traction.
“I think it would be very, very unfortunate if Joe Manchin decided to do that,” Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) said.
“I know he’s a supporter of President Biden and has been an important person here in the U.S. Senate in terms of getting things done,” Stabenow added.
“And he knows that if he were to step in [to the race] that it would make it much more likely Donald Trump would be president again, and I know Joe Manchin doesn’t want that.”
Democratic senators expressed disappointment and emphasized the potential catastrophic impact of a second Trump presidency.
“I always take Joe Manchin at his word. I think the first thing he’s going to do is go around the country, see if he can mobilize what he thinks is a moderate majority of voters, people who want their government to get stuff done and not the people who focus on the fighting of the extremes of each party,” Democratic strategist Jonathan Kott said.
“My reaction is disappointment, deep disappointment,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT).
“At his core, I think Joe Manchin is a Democrat and believes in Democratic values and principles. I’m deeply disappointed that he is still even talking about a possible run that would undermine Joe Biden.”
“The simple stark fact is that a Manchin run for president would undercut Joe Biden,” he added.
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