Joe Manchin won’t run for reelection, giving GOP an opening to flip West Virginia seat

I think it's natural.
We have a replay of 2016, two overall unpopular candidates for pres. 2024. Hillary and Trump were, imo, not thriling candidates. 2024 is offering, at this time, another two overall unpopular candidates, Makes sense to me that a decent candidate could make a move to usrurp the "popular" choice. Trump should bow out, but we all know that ain't happening, as well as Biden, which at this point ain't happening.
Is it any surprise that another candidate would be considered?
I look forward to having a solid candidate again. Last time (200 we had two decent candidates, and the most popular choice won. Obama was a decent president for eight years, but didn't take the bull by the horns I hoped the last 4.
The most popular doesn't usually match who I personally think is the most capable, but then I fall back to who is the best of the rest.

 

He might as well be a repub, so who cares?

 

Obviously not you.
Trying to find an alternative to the dilemma that faces the average voter in America. I much prefer Biden over Trump, as Trump should not even be considered as president again, but trying to deal with the reality of the situation.

 

The Democrats wanted to get rid of Manchin, now they got their wish. Manchin wasn’t going to win reelection in West Virginia, he knew this which I think played a big part in his decision to retire or not seek reelection. Manchin was the only statewide democrats left in West Virginia. The Republicans hold a super majority in West Virginia’s state legislature. The Republicans have an 89-11 advantage in West Virginia’s house and a 31-3 margin in the senate.


Talk has it that the no labels party wants Manchin to be either their presidential or VP candidate. There’s no doubt most Americans don’t want Biden nor Trump. 61% of all Americans don’t want Biden to run again, 58% don’t want Trump to run again either. Questions 16 and 17.


https://d3nkl3psvxxpe9.cloudfront.net/documents/econTabReport_bpzPgoE.pdf


Most polls this far out give only two choices, Trump or Biden, but this one gave four. Question 5 below the narrative. Biden 36%, Trump 35%, RFK Jr. 19%, West 6%, Other 1%. It gets worse if on goes to the independent’s column, the election deciders, Biden 27%, Trump 30%, RFK Jr. 33, West 8%.


https://poll.qu.edu/poll-release?releaseid=3881


Which shows total dissatisfaction out their for this rematch if you’re not a republican Trumper or a democrat anti-Trumper. Add the no labels party if they do go with Manchin along with a Hogan or a Romney, it seems we’ll have an election like no other. This rematch of an election is one made in hell for most Americans.

 

Money is disastrously over-important to people and cataclysmically too influential in "democratic" elections.

 

not at the rate that earns someone the sort of wealth that leads to a net worth of over 100 million dollars

 

You say that money, isn't everything
But I'd like to see you live without it


Gillies/Johns (Silver Chair)

 

Time to rip off that band-aid, instead of the slow pull of watching a Republican pretend to be a Democrat.

Hope he follows the Douglas MacArther advice and just fades away.

He won't be missed.

 

the reason Manchin is quitting is very obvious

if he tried for re-election he loses...Manchin is gonna take his ill-gotten fortune and ride off in the sunset

he cannot beat Jim Justice ,,,Justice is term limited as governor in 2024

what a name for a poltician!! JIm Justice...who could vote against a name such as that??

Justice won as a democrat, then changed parties after elected

this needs to be pointed out...Justice won his first governors race as a democrat..

Justice is to W Virginia what Andy Beshear is to Kentucky

except Jim Justice is very wealthy,,,by far the richest man in W virginia

Justice is a coal mining Mogul..but has lost some wealth since trump days

my guess is, Justice will be the "bring back coal" senator"

 

Well, he can only HOPE he'll be the "bring back coal" senator, because unless something big happens, THIS will be the image that I think of when I think of him

 

As a WV resident I have to say Joe Manchin could have never win reelection as he is fully aware. In the sourthern part of the State, many hate him for his rabid support of gun control and support for Joe Biden. You know, the Biden that told unemployed coal miners to learn to code. In the Northern Panhandle many environmentally concerned liberals hate him for bringing heavy industry to the panhandle, supporting fracking, etc. and then having his former supporters arrested by the Capital police when they went to his office to protest.

https://popularresistance.org/resist-rockwool-holds-sit-in-of-senator-joe-manchin-office/

Also, WV current Governor Jim Justice who is running for Senate is very popular. A big plus with good old boy Jim -- he knows how to communicate with liberals.

 

Jim has two words for you. lol

 

Getting elected as a US Senator is not riding off into the sunset. As you point out WV was a Dem State but after being [deleted] by the Dems they are a Republican State for the most part. The Dems elected to State offices in WV are extremely conservative by Dem standards. WV is great State. Love living here. Sad to say more an more libs move to the WV panhandle every day fleeing the mess they created and wanting to bring it to WV.

 

That would be my expectation as well.... two

 

I watched Manchins farewell speech ..

he claimed he has did enough during his time as one of the 2 senators from WV..

agreed , he did not specifically say he was riding off in the sunset after his term ends

but my guess is he will be sailing off into the sunset ..

not sure what he is doing now...bur he lived on a boat for awhile in Washington

he claimed it was to save rent money!! lol

 

Not really an answer to the question who is funding "no labels". Do you know??

 

What makes you think he will have a chance? This would be wholely dependent on how many state ballots, for which he could qualify. At the moment, No Labels has gained access to 12 of them. If they get on enough to make reaching 270 electoral votes a realistic possibility (which would mean getting on nearly all, pragmatically speaking), Republican former MD governor Larry Hogan, has expressed an interest in running for them. If either he or Manchin were to run, but only on say half of the state ballots, They might likely draw more Biden voters, and so propel a Trump victory. If Manchin and/or Hogan could get on enough ballots to have a real chance, and therefore possibly even win a couple of states, then this would make more likely the scenario of no candidate getting enough electoral votes, to be declared the victor; in which case, the winner would be determined by the House, which would likely mean Trump would, once again, get the call.

 

What makes you say that?

 

I think he is definitely testing the waters, to see what kind of reaction he gets from voters; he would need lots of interest, and lots of volunteers, to get on most of the state ballots (even if he ran for No Labels, which has currently only gained access to 12 of them). Former Republican Governor of MD, Larry Hogan, has expressed an interest in running for No Labels, but only if he has a real chance of winning-- which would not be clear, before it becomes predictable that their candidate would be on the ballot, in most states. I suppose, if Manchin sees a strong public response, he might consider beating Hogan to the punch, by accepting the No Labels nomination (I don't think that group would have a traditional Primary), and hoping that his announced candidacy, would spur the community engagement necessary, to meet the petition requirements in all/most states.

After citizen interest, Manchin would also need evaluate donor interest, especially if he was not going to run under the No Labels banner, which already has significant institutional supporters. If he decided to run, though, being on the No Labels ticket, seems the most probable option.

 

I'd vote for Manchin for president in a heartbeat. I don't even care that he's as old as Biden and Trump. I'd vote for him even if he was 90. We need moderates in government, not the increasingly extreme morons on both sides of the aisle.

 

The Maine Avenue marina where I believe he keeps his boat is not going to be cheap. However, I have to say from experience the Gangplank Bar and Grill next to the marina is a nice place to toss back a drink or two.

 

I have no idea who is funding "No Labels".

 

They are not disclosing all the donors, at this point-- since they are not officially a political party but, rather, a nonprofit organization-- however, they would do so, if they fielded a Presidential ticket. Nonetheless, the word is that they are well-funded, and some wealthy sponsors are known:

<Google Snip>
Early donors to No Labels include board member Andrew Tisch, co-chairman of Loews Corporation; Ron Shaich, founder of Panera Bread; Dave Morin, a former Facebook executive, and supporters of Michael Bloomberg.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org › wiki
No Labels - Wikipedia
<End Snip>


Below is a link to the Managing Directors & Legal team. The founding Chairman is Joe Lieberman, who was once my own Senator. I do not think much of Lieberman (personal experience provided, upon request). The National Co-Chair, is Larry Hogan (fmr. moderate Republican governor of Maryland). The CEO, Nancy Jacobson, had formerly served as the finance chair, for the DNC (though she is no longer a Democrat).

https://www.nolabels.org/meettheteam2022


So the image that No Labels is trying to project, is of having a non-partisan philosophy, and bipartisan intentions. But the article, below, shows that if one looks more closely, there is good reason to suspect they have more of a Republican lean (one time Democrat, then "independent" Joe Lieberman, notwithstanding). The article cites No Labels' being behind "bipartisan caucuses," in the House & Senate-- a number of the Republican members of which, followed Trump's dictates, 90% of the time or more.
Also, see among some of the big money contributors, the infamous Harlan Crow.

Though they've still got a long ways to go, they began their ballot drive last year, with a goal of raising $70 million, to fund the effort. They have so far raised $60 million. While, to this point, they've only reached their goal of getting on the ballot in 12 states, who knows how close they are, in those other states?

https://www.newyorker.com/news/dail...ttracting-potential-candidates-it-doesnt-want


<Snip (#2)>
No Labels was founded in 2010 by a group of politicians and political strategists affiliated with both the Democratic and Republican parties, with a mission to break through partisan gridlock in Congress and to encourage across-the-aisle coöperation. Its signature accomplishment, sponsoring bipartisan caucuses in both the House and the Senate, has been criticized by Democrats for giving cover to conservative members of the Party to vote with Republicans; meanwhile, a Washington Post analysis found that, during the Trump Administration, a number of Republican caucus members followed the dictates of the White House upward of ninety per cent of the time. Last year, No Labels pivoted away from a focus on Congress and reportedly set a goal of raising seventy million dollars for what it called an “insurance policy for 2024”: gaining ballot access in all fifty states in order to give Americans “the choice to vote for a presidential ticket that features strong, effective, and honest leaders who will commit to working closely with both parties.”

So far, No Labels has raised sixty million dollars, but it has been able to skirt Federal Election Commission disclosure rules that would require it to report the source of its funding. This is because it is a nonprofit organization and not, for the purposes of the Federal Election Commission, what is known as a political-party committee. (A political-party committee triggers F.E.C. oversight.) But, since some of its donors have been reported to be Republican operatives and Trump supporters—most notably the billionaire Harlan Crow and the private-equity investor Tom McInerney, a major financial supporter of the Republican National Committee—Democrats have accused the group of being a spoiler that will take more votes away from Biden than from Trump, allowing the twice-impeached, four-times-indicted former President to secure a second term. Jacobson, who has previously served as the finance chair for the Democratic National Committee, has denied that this is the case, saying that the group would drop its effort if it looked as if it would help Trump win—though it remains unclear how that would be determined. She added, “We will not spoil for either side. The only reason to do this is to win.” (A spokesperson for No Labels said Jacobson is no longer a Democrat.)
<End Snip (#2)>

 

That would be important info..

 

Kennedy, Johnson, Bush 1 and 2, Trump ... all born to wealth, and all completely disingenuous when it came to understanding Americans who had to struggle to get things that rich people take for granted, which is most of us. It's a mindset.