A week ago, Sen. Joe Manchin announced in a Charleston Gazette-Mail op-ed he would not support HR 1/S 1, also known as the For the People Act.
HR 1 is a federal reaction to the slew of voter-suppression laws cropping up in individual states. The goal is to make sure that elections are as secure as possible while keeping voting as accessible as possible.
According to the resolution’s congressional summary, the For the People Act would provide expanded and more secure mail-in voting, same-day voter registration, independent redistricting committees and ethics codes for all three branches of government among other things. It would also make campaign finances more transparent. It’s as close as reality will get to the dream of politicians wearing NASCAR-style jumpsuits with the names of their sponsors.
The backlash to Manchin’s announcement has been swift and prolific. National headlines decry that he’s killed essential voting legislation and letters to the editor have flooded our inbox, imploring Manchin to change his mind.
We’ve waited a few days to see if any of the public pressure — particularly from the very people he is supposed to represent — would change his stance. It has not. If anything, he has doubled-down on his position.
Fox News’ Chris Wallace asked Manchin, “Aren’t you being naive about this continuing talk about bipartisan cooperation?”
We’ve wondered something similar. We’ve wondered what fantasyland Manchin lives in that he believes Senate Republicans under Mitch McConnell will ever give enough support to anything championed by Democrats for it to actually pass. Even the most bipartisan Senate votes for widely popular legislation — like the Jan. 6 commission — haven’t garnered more than six or seven Republican votes, which will never be enough to overcome Manchin’s beloved filibuster.
The For the People Act has bipartisan support everywhere in the country except in the halls of the U.S. Capitol. Even in West Virginia, HR 1 has 79% support, according to a poll conducted by Global Strategy Group and ALG Research. Unfortunately, there are a precious few Republicans in the Senate willing to vote for the legislation the majority of America supports. The rest are terrified of running afoul of McConnell or the former president.
We’re beginning to think it’s not naiveté or optimism that’s driving Manchin to jettison major Democratic bills in the name of “bipartisanship.”
One thing we know about politicians: They’re constantly looking to the next election.
Manchin may have voted with his conscience on the Jan. 6 commission, but he’s voting with his hope for reelection on everything else.
He’s appealing now to West Virginia’s right and far-right base, particularly the hardcore Trumpers. It doesn’t help Manchin that Salon and Reuters reported Thursday the conservative Chamber of Commerce, a vocal opponent of HR 1 and ending the filibuster, donated to Manchin’s campaign for the first time since 2012 just before his op-ed published. It’s not unreasonable to think the Chamber’s recent contribution influenced Manchin’s stance.
Appropriate then, that Manchin won’t vote “for the people.” It’s becoming clear he’s only voting for himself.
