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☆ Manchin warns government to step up after Fitch credit rating downgrade
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) arrives prior to Israeli President Isaac Herzog's address to a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, July 19, 2023. WASHINGTON — Sen. Joe Manchin on Thursday called on his colleagues to take sorely needed budgetary steps to strengthen the economy after Fitch credit analysts' recent decision to downgrade the United States' long-held foreign issuer default rating. Fitch downgraded the U.S. credit rating from AA+ to AAA on Tuesday, months after having placed the nation's rating on negative watch in May. The credit rating firm cited the U.S. government's lengthy debt ceiling debate, along with the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, in its decision. Manchin's warning comes a day after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called the Fitch downgrade decision "entirely unwarranted" based on a "flawed assessment."

Persons: Joe Manchin, Isaac Herzog's, WASHINGTON — Sen, Fitch, Manchin, CNBC's, we're, Janet Yellen Organizations: U.S, Capitol, AAA, U.S . Capitol, West Virginia Democrat Locations: Washington, States

☆ Manchin’s New Hampshire trip will leave Democrats shivering
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

The West Virginia Democrat’s model has served him well with repeated statewide wins in one of the most conservative pro-Trump states in the nation. For now, Manchin’s noncommittal answers are worrying some of his Democratic colleagues. Polls show that both Biden and Trump, the front-runner for the GOP nomination, are unpopular. It argues, therefore, that 79 electoral votes are potentially at risk for Biden from the involvement of a third-party challenger. Such a challenger would also need to win states where Biden won big, and at least some conservative bastions.

Persons: West Virginia Sen, Joe Manchin, Donald Trump, Manchin, who’s, Joe Biden, roil Biden’s, CNN’s Manu Raju, –, “ I’ve, Biden, Manchin’s, Arizona Sen, Mark Kelly, ” Kelly, “ I’m, West, Vermont Sen, Bernie Sanders, Biden –, Georgia –, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Trump, “, Robert Kennedy Jr, ’, Kennedy, Ron DeSantis, DeSantis, Jake Tapper, ”, Jon Huntsman, Ryan Clancy, CNN’s Michael Smerconish, we’ve, Jill Stein, Ralph Nader, Gary Johnson –, Nader, Stein, siphoning, Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, CNN’s Harry Enten, don’t, Chris Christie, Trump’s, ” Christie Organizations: CNN, West, Democratic, West Virginia Democrat’s, Trump, Senate, Manchin, Harvard, Green, GOP, Biden, Florida Gov, Democratic National Committee, Republican Gov, Saint Anselm College in, Republican, Democrats, Green Party, Libertarian Party, Trump Republicans, Quinnipiac University, Former New Jersey Gov, ABC Locations: West Virginia, New Hampshire, Granite, Arizona, “ State, Vermont, Georgia, Covid, South Carolina, Florida, Saint Anselm College in Manchester, United States, Washington, Former

☆ Joe Manchin has the straightest and whitest staff of any Democratic senator, survey finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sen. Joe Manchin appears to have the least diverse staff of any Democratic senator. A Senate diversity survey found that 0% of his staff identify as LGBTQ, and just 12% are non-white. According to an annual survey of diversity among Senate Democratic staffers released this week, just 12% of the conservative West Virginia Democrat's staffers identify as non-white — the lowest of any Senate Democratic office. And in a stark contrast from the rest of the Democratic caucus, 0% of his staffers identify as LGBTQ, according to the survey. When it comes to gender diversity, Manchin also ranks low among the rest of his colleagues: 46% of his staff are women.

Persons: Sen, Joe Manchin, Manchin, — Sens, Maria Cantwell, Chris Coons, Raphael Warnock, Georgia Organizations: Democratic, Service, West Virginia Democrat's, Maria Cantwell of Washington, Democrats, Republicans Locations: Wall, Silicon, West Virginia, West, Maria Cantwell of, Chris Coons of Delaware

☆ Mountain Valley Pipeline Halted as Legal Wrangling Heats Up
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Coral Davenport | More About Coral Davenport | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The LatestA federal court in Richmond has halted construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, setting off a battle with Congress that could end up at the Supreme Court. It was a highly unusual provision that was tucked into legislation that had nothing to do with pipelines — the law to raise the debt ceiling. Congress also included provisions to expedite construction of the pipeline and insulate it from judicial review. Those elements were added as a concession to Senator Joe Manchin III, the West Virginia Democrat whose vote has been crucial to President Biden’s domestic agenda. But environmentalists, Democratic members of the Virginia congressional delegation and some constitutional law experts argue that by directing a change in courts, Congress has violated the separation of powers clause in the Constitution.

Persons: Joe Manchin III, Biden’s Organizations: Supreme, U.S, Appeals, Fourth Circuit, Congress, U.S ., District of Columbia Circuit, West Virginia Democrat, Democratic Locations: Richmond, West Virginia, Virginia

☆ Congress Ended Pandemic Cash for Parents, but Some States Have Embraced the Idea
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Dana Goldstein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For a brief period during the coronavirus pandemic, the federal government gave most parents monthly cash — up to $300 per child — with no work requirements or restrictions on how the money could be spent. But a growing number of states are moving forward with their own programs, often with Republican support. Last week, Colorado became the ninth state in two years to guarantee some form of cash income to its poorest parents. The law, which passed with bipartisan support, will be the second most generous in the country, providing parents making less than $35,000 per year with up to $1,200 annually for each child under 6. Minnesota’s program, which became law last month, is the most generous, guaranteeing families earning $35,000 or less with up to $1,750 in cash annually for each child under 17.

Persons: Joe Manchin III Organizations: West Virginia Democrat Locations: Colorado

☆ The Debt Limit Deal and Climate Action
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Manuela Andreoni | Brad Plumer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The debt ceiling deal would surely speed up one thing. It’s a big win for the established oil and gas producers and their champion in the Senate, Joe Manchin III, a West Virginia Democrat. But opponents say a new gas pipeline, which would operate for decades, defies the scientific consensus that the world needs to move quickly away from fossil fuels in order to slow down climate change. In theory, that could speed up oil and gas projects as well as renewables. The sheer volume of wind and solar projects that have been built recently “has overwhelmed the nation’s antiquated systems to connect new sources of electricity to homes and businesses.”

Persons: Joe Manchin III, aren’t, “ Organizations: Senate, West, West Virginia Democrat Locations: West Virginia

☆ Joe Manchin is set to get a big win out of the debt ceiling deal on a gas pipeline that Virginia Democrats and environmentalists hate
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Sen. Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, has long pushed for a controversial gas pipeline. The debt ceiling deal will likely force federal agencies to approve the project's remaining permits. The Democrat and his fellow West Virginia lawmakers have for years pushed for the completion of a controversial 303-mile pipeline that would carry Appalachian shale gas from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia. Virginia's Democratic lawmakers are staunchly opposed to the pipeline provision. He plans to file an amendment to remove this harmful Mountain Valley Pipeline provision."

Persons: Sen, Joe Manchin, —, Joe Biden, Kevin McCarthy, Manchin, McCarthy, Manchin didn't, Virginia Sens, Tim Kaine, Mark Warner, Kaine, Jennifer McClellan, Kaine doesn't, John Podesta, Tim Kaine's Organizations: West, West Virginia Democrat, Service, Democrat, Republicans, Democratic, Appeals, Circuit, Democratic House, Washington Post Locations: West Virginia, Virginia, America

☆ ‘No Labels’ Eyes a Third-Party Run in 2024. Democrats Are Alarmed
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Jonathan Weisman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The bipartisan political group No Labels is stepping up a well-funded effort to field a “unity ticket” for the 2024 presidential race, prompting fierce resistance from even some of its closest allies who fear handing the White House back to Donald J. Trump. The centrist group’s leadership was in New York this week raising part of the money — around $70 million — that it says it needs to help with nationwide ballot access efforts. “The determination to nominate a ticket” will be made shortly after the primaries next year on what is known as Super Tuesday, March 5, said Nancy Jacobson, the co-founder and leader of No Labels. A national convention has been set for April 14-15 in Dallas, where a Democrat-Republican ticket would be set to take on the two major-party nominees. (Mr. Biden is facing two long-shot challengers, and Mr. Trump is the Republican front-runner.)

☆ Manchin Clashes With Biden Administration Over Climate Law
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ever since Senator Joe Manchin III, the conservative West Virginia Democrat, cast the crucial vote last year for the Inflation Reduction Act, delivering President Biden his biggest legislative victory to date, the bill has weighed him down politically. Mr. Manchin’s poll numbers in his solidly Republican and coal-rich state dropped last year after he played a critical role in writing the climate, health and tax legislation. He has since worked to rebrand the pro-environment law, telling voters it would not only combat climate change but also ensure fossil fuel production in the United States. He has professed frustration and dismay at what he calls the “radical climate agenda” that he says is driving the Biden administration’s rollout of the law. And he is still irritated that his colleagues failed to include one of his top priorities: an initiative to speed permitting of energy projects.

The boosted tax credit is central to the administration’s goal of ensuring areas long dependent on fossil fuels benefit from clean energy. "Communities like coal communities have the knowledge, infrastructure, resources and know-how to play a leading role in the move to a clean energy economy," U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said. The bonus credit also is available to other "energy communities" - areas that have significant employment or local tax revenues from fossil fuels and higher than average unemployment. The Treasury said it will open project applications for the first round of coal and energy communities tax credits on May 31. Those minerals are crucial to producing clean energy technologies like batteries and solar panels.

April 4 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Tuesday will release final guidance on how clean energy companies can secure additional tax credits when investing in U.S. communities economically tied to fossil fuels like oil and coal. The boosted tax credit is central to the administration’s goal of ensuring areas long dependent on fossil fuels benefit from clean energy. It also helped secure West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin's essential support for the bill. "Communities like coal communities have the knowledge, infrastructure, resources and know-how to play a leading role in the move to a clean energy economy," U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said. Those minerals are crucial to producing clean energy technologies like batteries and solar panels.

☆ Sinema privately trashed Senate Democrats to GOP lobbyists, saying they eat too much Jell-O and waste time
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema privately trashed her Democratic colleagues to GOP lobbyists. Sinema said she stopped attending party lunches because "old dudes are eating Jell-O" and it's a waste of time. Earlier this year, Sinema formally left the Democratic Party. Earlier this year, Sinema formally left the Democratic Party and became an independent, though she still caucuses with Democrats. An unnamed Senate Democrat once told Martin earlier this year that Sinema is "the biggest egomaniac in the Senate."

☆ Sen. Joe Manchin Urges Democrats to Pursue Spending Cuts With Republicans
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Siobhan Hughes | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON—Sen. Joe Manchin, who has been a decisive vote in Senate Democrats’ narrow majority, called for his Democratic colleagues to hold talks with Republicans on cutting federal spending, ahead of a summer deadline to reach a deal on raising the country’s debt ceiling. “My Democratic friends don’t want to say a word about our out-of-control spending and are outright refusing to even talk to Republicans about reasonable and responsible reforms,” the West Virginia Democrat said in a speech on the Senate floor. “We’re going to pay our debts, we have to pay our sins of the past, but can’t we at least sit down and discuss?” he said. “Can we even talk about that and see if there’s a pathway forward?”

☆ Matt Gaetz tried playing kingmaker during the House speaker vote after spending 2 years as a political pariah. Republicans say the grandstanding is unlikely to stop.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz was a key player in the House speaker vote fight. "I don't think this guy's looking to be a policymaker," the GOP strategist told Insider. Doug Heye, a former House leadership aide turned GOP strategist, said the jury's still very much out on Gaetz's motivations and his endgame. Or, it could be as easy as believing that guy who donned a gas mask to ridicule a House vote on COVID-19 relief is committed to troublemaking. Not a workaholicA former House GOP leadership aide said Gaetz's reputation precedes him on Capitol HIll.

☆ Sinema and Manchin high-five over supporting the filibuster at World Economic Forum in Davos
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin high-fived over their support for the filibuster on Tuesday. The pair were speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Sinema said the 2022 election showed Democrats were wrong to oppose the Senate rule. "As we all know," Sinema, flanked by West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, said Tuesday, "the filibuster was not eliminated. At the end of her remarks, Manchin chimed in: "We still don't agree on getting rid of the filibuster."

☆ Home Depot's 93-year-old cofounder who said 'nobody works' anymore because of 'socialism' has donated $64 million to elect Trump and the Republican party over the years
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Bernie Marcus, the billionaire cofounder of Home Depot, said Thursday "nobody works" anymore. Marcus donated millions to Trump in 2016 and 2020, and more to other Republicans over the years. In an interview with the Financial Times published Thursday, 93-year-old Bernie Marcus said "nobody works, nobody gives a damn," blaming the change on "socialism." In 2020, he made two separate donations of $5 million each to the Preserve America PAC, a single-candidate PAC that supports Trump. Marcus has also donated extensively to House and Senate races, contributing to a long list of Republican lawmakers that includes Sens.

☆ Kyrsten Sinema leaving the Democratic Party and registering as an independent
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Jeremy Herb | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is leaving the Democratic Party and registering as a political independent, she told CNN’s Jake Tapper in an exclusive TV interview. While Sanders and King formally caucus with Democrats, Sinema declined to explicitly say that she would do the same. She also brushed aside criticism she may face for the decision to leave the Democratic Party. “Nothing about the last two years indicates a major effort would’ve made helped – the exact opposite actually,” a White House official said. After a vote against filibuster changes in January, the Arizona Democratic Party’s executive board censured Sinema.

Republican leaders had promised voters during the election they would cut the mining permit review timeline in half and boost domestic EV mining, rather than seek more supply overseas. Westerman and other Republicans will be partially stymied by Republicans' failure to wrest control of the U.S. Senate from Democrats. With their newfound control, Republicans could threaten to withhold funding from agencies perceived as taking too long to approve mines. The Resolution project is opposed by Representative Raúl Grijalva, an Arizona Democrat who will relinquish his chairmanship of the House Natural Resources Committee to Westerman. Republicans say that expanding such deals to other countries is not a priority for the new Congress.

They underscore the importance of educating Black voters on the significance of the Dec. 6 runoff between Warnock and Republican contender Herschel Walker. Yet voting rights organizations supporting Warnock say Black voters they’ve spoken with remain energized because expanding Democrats’ majority in the Senate even by a single seat would have a significant impact. Les Talusan / Courtesy MoveOnIn last week’s election, Warnock received 90% of the Black vote, compared to Walker’s 8%, according to an NBC News exit poll. “All the elements we’re talking about impact mostly Black voters,” Albright said. And tired or not, Black voters will come out for the runoff.”Follow NBCBLK on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

☆ How Tuesday's election will impact the stock market — Watch the 'Republican portfolio' names
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Patti Domm | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

There will be things about gridlock the market doesn't like," said Ed Mills, Washington policy analyst at Raymond James. Meanwhile, under a Republican president, the stock market on average gains 4.9% when Democrats control Congress, and the market gains 7.3% with a split Congress. Strategas Research says the stock market is signaling that Republicans may sweep the election . There are clear stock market winners from a Republican victory, at least in the House. Laperriere, in a note, wrote that tech, small cap and financial firms are most vulnerable to higher taxes and tougher regulations, and they could benefit from a Republican Congress.

☆ Joe Manchin Criticizes Biden Over Comments on Closing Coal Plants
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Catherine Lucey | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Sen. Joe Manchin, who represents a coal-producing state, called on the president to apologize to coal workers. Sen. Joe Manchin criticized President Biden on Saturday over comments the president made the previous day about moving away from coal plants in favor of wind and solar energy. “President Biden’s comments are not only outrageous and divorced from reality, they ignore the severe economic pain the American people are feeling because of rising energy costs,” the West Virginia Democrat said in a statement.

President Joe Biden last week doled out $2.8 billion to miners developing new U.S. sources of lithium, nickel, copper and other EV minerals, as well as battery parts manufacturers and recyclers. Those grants followed August's Inflation Reduction Act, which links EV tax credits to minerals extracted domestically or from 20 allies. "People have a misconception about how quickly we can get mines up and running given the U.S. permitting process," said Megan O'Connor, Nth Cycle's CEO. "Hopefully, they'll give us some help and fast track some of the permitting process," said Kent Masters, Albemarle's CEO. The yawning divide between America and China's approaches to funding the EV supply chain is now a top concern for many policymakers and their advisers in the nation's capital.

☆ Fact Check-Headline about Adam Schiff payment of $7.6 million to a boy and his family published by parody website
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Senator Adam Schiff paid a boy and his family $7.6 million for an undisclosed lawsuit was posted by a parody website, although some social media users were duped. Reuters Fact Check found no evidence online to support the claim that any such payment was made, and no news reports related to such a lawsuit. A spokesperson for Schiff told Reuters Fact Check: “This is a disgusting and completely false allegation that has been peddled by QAnon conspiracy theorists. That such filth is pushed online by QAnon shows what a danger to the public discourse they have become.”Reuters Fact Check has previously addressed falsehoods shared by the parody website (here) , (here). This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team.

☆ Manchin Seeks New Energy-Project Permitting Route After Senate Setback
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Katy Stech Ferek | Natalie Andrews | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

For the past two years, Democrats needed Sen. Joe Manchin . Now, he needs them, plus some Republicans. Facing weak support, Mr. Manchin’s proposal to speed up federal environmental reviews of major energy projects was dropped Tuesday from a Senate bill needed to keep the government open. With the permitting measure out of the must-pass legislation, the West Virginia Democrat will have to engage in talks with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in hopes of reaching a deal by the end of the year.

☆ Democrats strip Manchin's permitting reform bill from must-pass government funding measure after both Republicans and progressives pledged to vote against it
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Manchin's permitting reform plan was struck from a must-pass government funding bill on Tuesday. Progressives opposed it for environmental reasons, while Republicans want an even stronger bill. It's a major defeat for the West Virginia Democrat, who might otherwise have a hard time passing it. The bill would've green-lit a pipeline in Manchin's home state of West Virginia. The removal of Manchin's permitting reform legislation represents an unusual defeat for the usually-pivotal conservative Democrat.

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