And That Reason Could Be Joe Manchin: The West Virginia senator appeared at a “No Labels” event earlier this week in New Hampshire, hinting that perhaps he would like to run for president under that mantle in 2024.
Joe Biden Has a Problem
No Labels, a group that for the last several cycles has been trying with little success to field a centrist, bipartisan presidential ticket, held an event this week in New Hampshire, with the participation of a sitting U.S. Senator, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV). Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, a Republican who has served in administrations of both parties.
Manchin is a Democrat, but he’s the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, representing a very red state, and has frequently bucked his own party. His participation in the No Labels event has indicated that Manchin, who has not announced whether he’ll run for re-election, might be eying a third-party presidential bid. And this has Democrats, who fear a spoiler throwing the election to Donald Trump, very worried.
Per CNN, Manchin has not ruled out that idea, even if it means being a “spoiler” in the 2024 presidential race.
“I’ve never been in any race I’ve ever spoiled. I’ve been in races to win,” Manchin said. “And if I get in a race, I’m going to win.”
Both argued, at the event, against bitter partisanship in Washington.
“We’re here,” Manchin said at the New Hampshire event, “to make sure the American people have an option.”
He added, in a separate interview with CNN, said that President Biden had “been pushed too far left,” but “has the strength to fight back.”
Former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory laid out some of No Labels’ plans, which will presumably entail running a presidential ticket in the event that Biden and Donald Trump are again the nominees of the two major parties.
“We will present a president and vice president candidate on a No Labels ticket if Biden and Trump are on track to win their parties’ nominations,” McCrory said, per CNN. “We plan to do that. But only if we see we have an opportunity to win.’
No Labels also announced its policy agenda, which entails splitting the difference on most of the issues that divide the country.
“America can’t solve its biggest problems and deliver the results hardworking taxpayers want, need, and deserve unless Democrats and Republicans start working together side by side on bipartisan solutions,” the agenda begins. And like virtually every major nonpartisan effort that has emerged over the last few decades, a major part of it is cutting spending and the deficit.
“Washington must stop spending so much more than it takes in. From now on, the annual budget should be reasonable and responsible, which means our national debt needs to stop growing faster than our economy,” it says, also calling to get health care costs under control, reduce the deficit, and pass a budget every year.
On other issues, No Labels seems unlikely to make anyone happy.
“Americans have a constitutional right to own guns, but society also has a responsibility to keep dangerous weapons away from dangerous people,” the group says.
The group also declares that “as a matter of decency, dignity, and morality, no child in America should go to bed or go to school hungry”- which is a laudable goal, but not something that is likely to be achieved while also cutting spending and reducing the deficit.
The agenda is called “Common Sense.” And in the Washington Post this week, in reference to the No Labels effort, columnist Paul Waldman made the case against “common sense” in politics, mostly because the idea is so nebulous.
“My fellow Americans, I rise in opposition to common sense,” Waldman wrote. “The trouble today is that when you hear someone make an appeal to common sense, as countless politicians in both parties do, there is a good chance they’re leading you down a path in which reality is denied and solutions have little or nothing behind them.”
Expertise and Experience: Stephen Silver is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive. He is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenSilver.
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