Sen. Joe Manchin’s Opposition to Biden Agenda Backed by History of Putting Corporations Over People

As President Biden negotiates the final size and scope of the Build Back Better Act with fellow Democrats, Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia has emerged as a major hurdle to his agenda. The conservative Democrat and his family would potentially profit from his opposition to the key planks of the bill, including green energy investment and raising corporate taxes to pay for the package. Stephen Smith, co-chair of West Virginia Can’t Wait, says Manchin fits into a long history of state lawmakers working for corporate interests. “Senator Manchin and the rest of our congressional delegation has never represented the people of our state,” says Smith, who ran for governor in 2020, placing second in the Democratic primary. “Politics in West Virginia has never been left versus right, red team versus blue team. It’s the people who are suffering and dying and surviving versus the people who are trying to profit off of that pain.”

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