Joe Manchin Kills Progressive Hopes Of Ending Senate Filibuster, Expanding Supreme Court

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., this week quelled any hopes Democrats may have had for doing away with the filibuster or rectifying a right-leaning Supreme Court.

In an interview with Fox News, Manchin said that even if Democrats win back the Senate, he would not go along with plans that seemed too radical.

“50-50 means there's a tie. But if one senator does not vote on the Democratic side there is no tie. ... When they talk about, whether it be packing the courts or ending the filibuster, I will not vote to do that," he said.

Manchin, who has been in the Senate since 2013, said earlier in the year that he would be against eliminating the filibuster, which essentially requires 60 votes to get anything past the Senate.

He instead would turn to bipartisan cooperation. “I think our Republican, moderate Republicans, will work with us,” Manchin said.

Manchin said that progressive talking points were a problem for the Democrats and not representative of who they are. He said that the “Green New Deal” and “All this socialism … [scares] the bejeezus out of people.”

Manchin’s stance may cause a furor amongst progressives, who are already concerned that Biden’s rhetoric around bipartisanship and reaching out to Trump supporters signals a return to what they see as a decidedly ineffective Obama administration.