Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin heatedly denied a published report on Wednesday that stated the West Virginia lawmaker would soon leave the Democratic Party and become an independent.
“It's b-----t!” is how Manchin described the report that appeared in Mother Jones magazine, which said that the veteran senator, frustrated at the inability of fellow Democrats to shrink the $3.5 trillion price tag on the President’s proposed infrastructure package, would become an "American independent."
"I can’t control speculation," Manchin added.
Within hours, the author of the story, David Corn, told reporters he stood firmly behind the article, adding that Manchin knew very well his source was "unimpeachable."
The story gained considerable traction throughout the afternoon and evening — in part because Corn speculated that Manchin would possibly vote with Republicans to control the Senate (which would give them a majority in the evenly divided chamber and make Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell majority leader).
Manchin, who voted for President Trump 71% of the time, is also pro-life and supported the controversial nomination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
West Virginia Republicans who spoke to Newsmax almost universally agreed that Manchin, 74, would remain a Democrat until his present term ends in 2024.
"Just don’t see it happen," a GOP elected official responded to our question about whether Manchin would become an independent and possibly move over to the Republican Party.
The same source reminded us that Manchin was re-elected in one of the closest Senate races of 2018 (49.57%-46.26%) and is the lone Democrat in statewide office and in the Mountaineer State’s congressional delegation.
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