Where have you gone, Joe Manchin? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you . . . Woo, woo, woo
April 12, 2021
The United States Senate is currently made up of 50 Republicans and 50 Members that vote as Democrats (two of them are technically Independents). Ties in the Senate are broken by the Vice President. Therefore, the Democrats have a functional majority.
For those of you who took public school math when they still taught math, you have figured out that the Democrats cannot pass anything out of the Senate on their own if one of their Members votes “no.” Needless to say, this gives tremendous leverage to any moderate Democrat that doesn’t fully support the left-wing agenda of Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
One such Senator is Joe Manchin (D-WV). Manchin represents a conservative state. Old style Southern Democrats who work in the West Virginia coal mines have little in common with coastal liberals who focus more on getting men into women’s bathrooms than the plight of the middle class.
President Joe Biden’s bloated $1.9 trillion spending package that passed out of the Senate without one Republican vote is a complete waste of money. It was largely a bailout of states that have been poorly governed, resulting in economic destruction. Residents of West Virginia, a relatively poor state, will be shipping huge amounts of money to New York, California, Michigan, and other blue states. These states destroyed their economies through the implementation of policies to combat the coronavirus, most of which turned out to be utterly ineffective. What’s in this for Joe Manchin or his constituents? I have no idea.
Up until a few days ago, Manchin has been unwilling to oppose his left-wing leadership rhetorically, or with his vote. Finally, the patriotic version of Joe Manchin appeared last week when he came out strongly against his left-wing colleagues on filibuster reform. He stated in no uncertain terms that he will not support elimination or significant weakening of the filibuster.
One could argue that this proclamation by Manchin is too little too late. That’s fair. But preserving the filibuster is very important. It is literally the only significant tool that can be used to act as a buffer against unopposed Democratic power in Congress and the White House.
At last count, Joe Biden has signed 38 Executive Orders, many of which change policies or enact new polices that should have gone through the legislative process. The Senate is using the “reconciliation” process to avoid passing legislation through the normal channels. This allows them to legislate without facing a potential filibuster. Therefore, they don’t need one Republican vote.
It is obvious that today’s Democrat leadership and President Biden are unwilling to be constrained by the checks and balances that are built into our system. They are happy to engage in tyranny of the majority, which is supposed to be prevented by various safeguards built into a representative republic.
Senator Manchin, you are one of a few Democrats that have in the past shown fidelity to our institutions and common sense. Please, don’t let the pressure and arm twisting get to you. Stand up for your principles. Stand up for your state. Stand up for our nation.