U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, the conservative Democrat from West Virginia, said Friday that he’s considering “anything possible” as he continued to dangle the possibility of his entrance in the presidential race as an independent candidate.
However, at a ”Politically Georgia” event livestreamed from a studio on the Georgia State University campus, Manchin told Atlanta Journal-Constitution political reporter Greg Bluestein that he would not run simply to be a spoiler to President Joe Biden’s reelection bid.
“I’d have to see a clear opening if I was going to be involved,” he said.
But in a show of confidence, the elected official who said he’s served 42 years in public office, said, “I’ve never been in any race that I can’t win.”
Manchin announced in November that he would not seek reelection as the prospect of a likely GOP challenger in a deeply Republican state grew stronger. Instead, the onetime two-term West Virginia governor said he would be “traveling the country and speaking out to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize and bring Americans together.”
Describing himself as “in the middle,” Manchin said he identifies as “fiscally conservative and socially compassionate.”
The event was an intimate gathering of students, professors and attendees interested in hearing the senator’s independent pitch. The interview was broadcast online at AJC.com.
Manchin took questions from the audience, responding to one about the Supreme Court by expressing support for term limits for justices to prevent politics from influencing their decisions. Addressing the ongoing war between Israel and the militant group Hamas, Manchin said he supports a two-state solution to bring peace to the region, but he said he does not think Palestinians are willing to accept Israel’s right to exist.
Domestically, Manchin said he is “all in for nuclear” as a way to wean the country off fossil fuels. He said the industry learned a lot from construction of a new reactor at Georgia’s Plant Vogtle, the first such nuclear power reactor built in the United States in more than three decades. The project has suffered from numerous delays and billions in cost overruns.
While Manchin repeatedly dodged questions about a presidential run, surveys and public sentiment show there may be an appetite for a third-party candidate.
According to polling by the AJC, conducted Jan. 3-11 by the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs, Donald Trump is favored against Biden in a matchup in Georgia, with a lead of 45% to 37%. However, the poll of 1,007 registered voters, with a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points, found nearly 20% of Georgians weren’t ready to support either candidate.
“They’re making you pick a side and want you to be as divided as you can,” he said. “We can have different ideas, but we’ve got to come together.”
That doesn’t mean those undecided voters would automatically shift toward a Manchin bid for the presidency. However, some experts believe he would be more likely to cut into Biden’s coalition rather than Trump’s.
If Manchin joined the race as an independent, he would follow Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-vaccine activist and nephew of former Democratic President John F. Kennedy. Candidates such as Cornel West, a professor who has taught at Harvard University and Princeton University, and Jill Stein, the Green Party choice, could also alter the contest.
Many voters have cited concern about the age of Biden, who is 81, and Trump, who is 77, and Republican candidate Nikki Haley has suggested party nominees pass a mental competency test. At 76, Manchin is close in age to both Biden and Trump but said he “feels 50 or 40″ years old and that voters can make the decision about his mental abilities.
He cited the immigration crisis at the U.S. southern border as the greatest issue facing the nation, and he said Democrats have “let this get out of control.”
Manchin has gained prominence because of his role as a centrist Democrat who often issues decisive votes in the closely divided Senate. His home state voted for Trump by wide margins in 2016 and 2020, and Manchin has been reluctant to stand with his party on left-leaning legislation, such as limiting greenhouse gas emissions.
In fact, he told Bluestein that he “killed” Biden’s Build Back Better plan but later supported the Inflation Reduction Act.
Responding to a question from Georgia State student Jordan Madden, Manchin said he supports investments in “new green technology” but the U.S. needs to ensure it can sustain 24/7 energy sources.
“You can’t eliminate the environment you want today, but you can innovate the environment you want tomorrow,” he said.
He also defended the filibuster, a rule that requires the U.S. Senate to reach 60 votes for legislation to pass, saying it made the chamber work together.
Following Manchin’s announcement to depart from the Senate, which Biden’s administration had sought to prevent, the president commended the senator for his vote on the Inflation Reduction Act.
Biden also thanked Manchin for voting to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson to the U.S. Supreme Court, the first Black woman to ascend to the seat.
As part of his tour across the Southeast, Manchin visited South Carolina on Thursday before heading to Atlanta.
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