January 1, Manchin Hits Back at White House Pressure to Support Biden Plan

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.VA.) sent the Democratic Party reeling by announcing he won’t support President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better plan. Manchin hit back at White House staff, saying the Democrats had miscalculated by assuming they could pressure him into supporting the $1.7 trillion package.

“This is not the president, this is staff,” Manchin told West Virginia radio host Hoppy Kercheval in a 14-minute MetroNews interview.

“I just got to the wit’s end,” he said, adding that White House staff “drove some things and they put some things out that were absolutely inexcusable. They know what it is.”

“They figured surely to God we can move one person. We surely can badger and beat one person up. Surely we can get enough protesters to make that person uncomfortable enough that they’ll just say, ‘OK, I’ll vote for anything.'”

“Well, guess what? I’m from West Virginia. I’m not from where they’re from and they can just beat the living crap out of people and think they’ll be submissive, period,” Manchin added.

Manchin’s position and comments sparked outrage from his party and a rare on-the-record rebuke from the White House.

“If his comments on FOX and written statement indicate an end to that effort, they represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position, and a breach of his commitments to the President and the Senator’s colleagues,” Psaki said in a statement.

When asked about the White House’s comments, Manchin said, “basically they retaliated.”

“I figured they would come back strong,” he said.

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Manchin blames White House staff for failed negotiations