West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, currently a member of the Democratic Party, stated on Thursday that he would “think very seriously” about ditching his affiliation in order to become an independent. This is something a lot of folks have predicted would happen eventually with Manchin, and it seems like he’s inching ever closer to making it a reality. Who can blame him? There’s no such thing as a common sense Democrat anymore. For example, if you ripped a JFK Democrat out of the 1960s and dropped him into the political landscape today, he’d be a Republican.
And back then, Republicans considered Democrats that today would be in the GOP to be commies. That’s how conservative the Republican Party was during that period of history. It’s insane how watered down the right has become over the years.
According to the Daily Wire, Manchin made an appearance on MetroNews talk show, “Talkline,” where he told host Hoppy Kercheval that he has given deep thought and consideration to switching to an independent after stating he “can’t accept” either of the two major parties.
“I would think very seriously about that. I’ve been thinking about that for quite some time. I haven’t made any decisions whatsoever on any of my political direction,” Manchin went on to say after he was pressed to clarify his position.
“I want to make sure my voice is truly an independent voice, when I’m speaking, I’m speaking about the good the Republicans do and the good the Democrats continue to do,” he said.
“Up for re-election in 2024, Manchin potentially faces a strong challenger in Governor Jim Justice, who in a hypothetical face-off defeated the incumbent by 22 points, as shown in an ECU poll released in May. Justice would still need to emerge victorious in the GOP primary in which Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV) is also running. Manchin, himself a former governor of West Virginia, has yet to announce whether he will seek another term in the Senate and appears open to the idea of a third-party campaign for the White House in 2024,” the report added.
In December 2022, the West Virginia Democrat stated he had “no intention” of leaving his party, however he said he would give the idea consideration. In the months since that time, he has complained quite frequently about the hardcore division that has ripped the United States apart and that he claims has left “common sense” people “politically homeless.” Very astute observation from Sen. Manchin. And I agree with that assessment.
If Manchin does finally decide to leave the Democratic Party, he would be following in the footsteps of Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema who told them adios last year and became an independent.
“For me, I have to have peace of mind basically,” Manchin went on to say during the program on Thursday. “The brand has become so bad. The ‘D’ brand and ‘R’ brand.”
The senator then shrugged off concerns that a presidential bid as a third-party candidate would undermine the reelection efforts of President Joe Biden and would pave the way for former President Donald Trump to take home the “W.”
“If we can create a movement … that people understand that we could have a voice,” Manchin stated. “We could make a big, big splash and maybe bring the traditional parties, the Democratic and Republican Party — what they used to be, back to what they should be today, but they’re gone off the Richter Scale, both sides.”
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