CLEVELAND, Ohio – Joe Manchin didn’t say he is running for president as a third-party candidate during an appearance in Cleveland on Thursday.
But he didn’t not say it either.
“Everything is on the table,” Manchin told reporters following an early morning forum at the City Club of Cleveland, a frequent host to presidents and presidential hopefuls, with a similar event planned in Columbus later in the day.
Ostensibly, Manchin was in Ohio to promote his new political organization, Americans Together. Manchin founded the group in late December with the goal of raising $100 million for moderate political candidates. To promote the organization, he’s scheduled a listening tour in politically notable states, hosting a launch event last month in New Hampshire, and plans to visit Michigan in a couple weeks just before the state’s Feb. 27 primary election.
Democrats are concerned about Manchin’s plans, believing a third-party presidential candidate could split off moderate Democrats and Republicans, causing Biden to lose. Cleveland Councilman Danny Kelly noted to reporters after the event that he was one of the only Democrats to attend, citing support for Biden as a reason. A few notable local Republicans, including ex-Cuyahoga County GOP Chairman Rob Frost also were in attendance.
During the forum, the moderate Democrat and U.S. Senator from West Virginia indulged speculation about his plans for 2024, sharing his centrist views on issues like fossil fuels and gun control while offering critiques of Democratic President Joe Biden and Republican ex-President Donald Trump.
Manchin called Biden a good man who’d been pulled too far to the left since becoming president in 2021, blaming him for increased illegal immigration by having permissive southern border policies. But he had harsher words for Trump, whom he said was playing to Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s plans for territorial expansion in Eastern Europe, and whom he blamed for tanking the recent bipartisan border security bill.
“Saying I don’t want to support this bill because of politics, that’s worse than what he [Biden] did,” Manchin said.
He also called the national Republican and Democratic parties “a shield for big business,” and he had a similar take on the National Rifle Association, which he called a front for gun and ammunition manufacturers.
He even offered up whom he might tap as his running mate – were he to run – when he was asked by the event’s moderator.
“I’d ask Mitt Romney. Maybe Rob Portman,” Manchin said, referencing the Utah Republican and the Ohio Republican who, like him, are either imminently leaving the Senate or who’ve already left.
After receiving another question from an audience member about whether he thought Biden would be his Democratic opponent in his hypothetical campaign, Manchin perhaps sensed he’d taken things a little too far.
“Guys, I’m not running for anything. I’m basically running to get people involved,” Manchin said. “The third party’s a hard road. The system’s set up that way.”
Manchin is a longtime Democrat who has been critical of his party and would have faced a grueling reelection campaign, given that Trump won West Virginia by nearly 40 points in 2020. Instead, Manchin opted to leave the Senate, although he objected Thursday to any suggestion that he was being run out of the Senate by broader political forces.
Instead, he said he’d recently become more supportive of term limits, which he said help inject new blood into the political system.
After the forum, and before meeting privately with Albert Ratner, a major political donor in Cleveland who has a longstanding affiliation with the City Club, he spoke with reporters for a few minutes. Here are a few quick questions and answers, edited for length.
You said you’re not running for president, but you used the present tense. How seriously are you considering running?
What I’m considering is how can I be most effective. And I’m looking at everything humanly possible. So third-party run, everything is on the table. Nothing is off the table. I’m still evaluating all that. Super Tuesday [March 5, when more than a dozen states hold primary elections] pretty much would be a deadline that tells you where you are. We’re looking at the trajectory right now.
What do you think about Sen. Sherrod Brown’s chances for reelection this year?
He is a very good representative for the state of Ohio. He’s a tremendous senator. His politics are much further to the left than mine, but he is so sincere and well prepared. And he’s willing to change if you show him the facts. He’s very pro-labor. And basically working people have that advocacy [from him.]
You praised Rob Portman. What do you think it says about politics and the chances for bipartisanship that he and you both were more or less run out of the Senate?
People are not run out. I believe you have to have new blood and change. But sure, it’s hard to replace Rob Portman, let’s put it that way. He was that good to work with. He was involved in every one of our bipartisan movements.
What do you think about the recent special counsel report that characterized President Biden as a forgetful old man? Does that mesh with your impressions of him?
If you’re going to base your vote on memory, and these [Biden and Trump] are your two choices, boy, we’re in trouble. But if you’re basing it on character, I think it’s a no-brainer who you should vote for.
You mean Biden, correct?
Correct.
Why do you think Democrats have slipped in places like West Virginia and Ohio?
They’re not communicating well, basically. And I think we have a strong economy, they don’t want to say we have energy security. They’re not talking about the things they’ve done because I guess they want to play to the base, thinking everything’s about the environment. But environment and reliability should go hand in hand.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
