Joe Manchin says he will vote against nominees if they don’t have bipartisan support
By Ted Barrett, CNN
Sen. Joe Manchin, a critical swing vote in the closely divided Senate, said Wednesday that from now on, he will only vote to confirm nominees who have the support of at least one Republican senator.
“I’m going to be very honest with everybody, if my Democratic colleagues and friends can’t get one Republican vote, don’t count on me. You can’t make it bipartisan, don’t count on me,” said the West Virginia Democrat who has announced his retirement that will begin in January 2025.
“I’m not leaving this place unless I can practice what I preach and I’m preaching, basically bipartisanship,” he said. “This is my little way of doing it.”
Manchin’s comments came in response to questions from CNN about President Joe Biden’s nominee for the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, Adeel Mangi, who would be the first Muslin-American on a federal appeals court. Many Republicans are vehemently opposed to him and accuse him having extreme views and part of a group they call antisemitic. Top Democrats strongly defend him and are pressing for a floor vote, after he was narrowly approved in the Senate Judiciary Committee in January, although they acknowledge not knowing if they have the votes to confirm him.
On Thursday, Manchin confirmed he would vote against Mangi.
One Democrat, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, announced her opposition to Mangi on Tuesday.
Sen Lisa Murkowski, a centrist Republican from Alaska who often votes across the aisle, told CNN Wednesday she needs to examine Mangi’s record before deciding how she will vote.
For Manchin, he said Wednesday there is one exception to his newly announced requirement of bipartisanship: “That’s my requirement unless they’re bats*** crazy. If they’re bats*** crazy left, I’m gonna vote against them anyway. If they’re halfway decent, they’ll get at least one Republican to vote for them.”
Asked if he still sees a viable path for Mangi to be confirmed, Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin said, “it certainly is going to be a challenge with the many things people are saying,” referring to vocal opposition to Mangi.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
CORRECTION: This story has been corrected to show that Mangi’s nomination is to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.
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