Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) is the Senate’s most famous centrist, often being the crucial factor in throwing a wrench in the Democrats‘ plans. His refusal to always vote along party lines has drawn the ire of liberal Democrats and the sympathy of Republicans.
His habit of breaking with the Democrats, and his ability to reach across the aisle, has helped to fuel speculation that he may run for president in 2024.
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Here are five times Manchin has split with Democrats during his time in the Senate.
1. Opposing the Washington, D.C., crime law
In one of his most recent major splits with Democrats, Manchin signaled that he would vote with Republicans to rescind a major new crime bill, which would reduce the sentence of some violent crimes.
“I don’t support it. I mean, I want to put people away, I don’t want to let them out,” Manchin said of the new law in an appearance on CNN. “I haven’t been briefed on it, but what I know about it, I would vote to rescind it.”
His siding with Republicans on the issue all but ensured that the law would pass through the Senate. Coupled with President Joe Biden’s pledge to sign the bill, the decision by the Council of the District of Columbia is all but dead in the water.
Aside from conflicting with more liberal views on criminal justice, Democrats viewed the bill as crippling the push to establish Washington, D.C., as a state.
2. Challenging Biden’s ESG investing rule
In February, Manchin and 48 Republican senators introduced a measure that would cancel a Biden administration rule that allows fiduciaries to weigh the environmental, social, and corporate governance factors, commonly known as ESG, when making investment decisions for retirees’ 401(k) accounts. He derided the decision by the Biden administration as “irresponsible” and warned that it could jeopardize citizens’ retirement savings
“At a time when our country is already facing economic uncertainty, record inflation, and increasing energy costs, it is irresponsible of the Biden administration to jeopardize retirement savings for more than 150 million Americans for purely political purposes,” he said in a statement. “I’m proud to join this bipartisan resolution to prevent the proposed ESG rule from endangering retirement incomes and protect the hard-earned savings of American families.”
3. Opposing a planned ban on gas stoves
Manchin partnered with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) to block an effort by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, introduced in January, that would ban gas stoves in homes. The move from Manchin and Cruz was preemptive because the agency hadn’t introduced any measures, but the two articulated fears that the government could ban an appliance used in an average of 35% of homes.
“The federal government has no business telling American families how to cook their dinner, which is why Sen. Cruz and I introduced bipartisan legislation to ensure Americans decide how to cook in their own homes,” Manchin said in a statement. “I can tell you the last thing that would ever leave our house is the gas stove we cook on, and I will continue to fight any overreach by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.”
4. Calling for a full investigation into Biden’s mishandling of classified documents
Manchin was one of a few Senate Democrats who called for a full investigation into Biden’s mishandling of classified documents. Most Senate Democrats were content to paint the situation as simply a distraction from former President Donald Trump’s mishandling, but Manchin went so far as to call Biden’s behavior “extremely irresponsible and disturbing.”
“The reports about President Biden’s mishandling of classified documents are extremely irresponsible and disturbing,” Manchin told Fox News. “These allegations should be investigated fully.”
His calls came in the weeks after the original revelation of documents being found at Biden’s Washington think tank — before other documents were discovered at his Delaware residence.
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5. Supporting Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court
In 2018, Manchin broke with Democratic Party dogma in declaring his support for Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court amid sexual assault allegations. Attempting to block Kavanaugh from the Supreme Court was a cause celebre of Democrats, making it one of Manchin’s most significant splits.
“I have reservations about this vote given the serious accusations against Judge Kavanaugh and the temperament he displayed in the hearing,” Manchin said at the time. “And my heart goes out to anyone who has experienced any type of sexual assault in their life. However, based on all of the information I have available to me, including the recently completed FBI report, I have found Judge Kavanaugh to be a qualified jurist who will follow the Constitution and determine cases based on the legal findings before him. I do hope that Judge Kavanaugh will not allow the partisan nature this process took to follow him onto the court.”
