The LuLac Edition #4,532, June 8th, 2021

 

JOE MANCHIN: WHAT EXACTLY IS HIS GAME? 

Senator Joe Manchin (Photo: LuLac archives) 

I grew up in a time when there was virtually no nuance in party politics. Maybe it was the act that my uncle was a School Director for 24 years. He served 12 on, 6 off and another 12 before his death at the age of 70. My mother's brother, the 11th of 13 kids, was an FDR Democrat as a young boy and as a World War II Navy veteran, he was devoted to JFK.   While he governed well with his Republican board members (he bowled and golfed with them) when it came to deviating from his own party, there was a golden rule. You never bit the hand of the girl who let you take her to the dance. When John Kennedy died, it was natural for him to follow Lyndon Johnson. Following your President or in his case a School Board Chair was not only a political obligation but a patriotic one. Why work your heart out for an election and then after getting the confidence of what you believe in validated do you NOT follow your leader?

To be clear, I think blind following is dangerous in the case of a failed leader. But when you have a small majority and have to rebuild the very structure of this democracy that is still very much at risk, there is little patience for naval gazing and wishful thinking. Right now, Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia can be doing a duet with Dusty Springfield on “Wishing and Hoping”.

One has to ask why Manchin, always a Conservative Democrat is putting faith in a Republican party that has been more interested in getting power than using it. In a TV interview I did with the late Governor Robert Casey, he told me “At the end of the day when you are gone, people are going to ask what you did when you had the power. Did you use it for good or for just the power itself?”  The Republican party has been in obstruction mode since the Tea Party in 2010 showed them the twin tools of "loud" and "no". Proof is the Infrastructure Bill. President Biden has come down one trillion dollars. He has given  everything to the GOP they themselves have been fighting for through the years. But yet in counter proposals there is nary a word on any of that stuff. The lack of sincerity is glaring. 

There is speculation about Manchin as to why he is opposing the Biden agenda. He wants bi-partisan ship when there seems to be none being offered. The Koch empire has been pressuring him to go against the John Lewis Voting Act as well as other policies endorsed not only by Democrats but large portions of this country. In fact, 76% of Manchin's own voters want these programs. Manchin is a former Secretary of state of West Virginia and he’s getting in bed with Trump-ite Mike Lee on this? Is Manchin a racist in choir boy clothing? He says a Voting Act should be bipartisan but when the Civil Rights Acts of the 60s were passed, it was the Republican party who helped get those bills passed. Southern Democrats filibustered by standing on their feet and doing the deed. Now the GOP won’t even endorse a commission on the attack on the Capitol. Wishing for a bipartisan relationship with this Republican party of today is like wishing for 30 cent gas and 10 cent hamburgers. It was nice but it isn't happening.

So what’s the solution? Someone told me the other night Manchin wants power. What kind of power? The power to say no? The power to go down in history as the guy who gave credence to the Trump aberration legitimacy?  Believe me that’s what will happen if Biden fails.

Manchin needs to be dealt with. Find out what he wants and give it to him. A seat on the Supreme Court? We can’t do any worse philosophically at this point. A sweet deal for his daughter, she of the Epi Pen fiasco a few years ago? Or maybe its time to go full court press and recruit a Republican moderate who has been demonized by the Trump base. Pat Toomey might need something. You might think this is hard knuckle politics and that the Yonk is being cynical here. But something or someone other than Manchin has to break the logjam. The Democrats as well as the rest of the country have too much at stake. What happens if a Democratic  Senator, a few who are well over 75 years of age die? There has to be action. Going it alone will get all the GOP crazed and moaning about bipartisan ship but they are offering NONE. Let’s face it, no matter what the Dems do, the opposition will demonize them anyway.

I don’t know what the solution is to Manchin and his self-righteous obstinate behavior. But I do know that if my uncle Timmy were alive and in power, a guy like Manchin would either be bought, persuaded, or by passed with a willing Republican who wanted to be on the right side of history. Because in the end, the answer to Governor Casey’s question, “What did you do when you had the power?” should never be “NOTHING, especially when you had the chance to change American history.

 FETTERMAN WEIGHS IN 

Lt. Governor Jon Fetterman (Photo: AP)  

Imagine a Democrat running for the Senate running against a member of his own party and trying to raise money off of his actions. But here’s what John Fetterman is doing.From an e mail sent to donors.

In case you missed it, it looks like Joe Manchin is a "no" vote on the For the People Act.

I truly don't get it.

We're talking about a simple bill that the vast majority of Americans support. It's a no-brainer as Republican lawmakers across the country try to systematically disenfranchise people to rig elections in their favor.

Call me old fashioned, but I think Democrats should vote like Democrats. We don't need to be so concerned with how Republican senators will vote — we just need to vote for what's right for the American people.

Here's a promise: If I get to the U.S. Senate, I'll be 100% on board with saving our democracy. I'll never base my vote on which way I think other senators are going to go — I'll just do what I know to be right.

Without flipping at least one more seat blue, we won't be able to toss the filibuster and get things done. That makes our race even more important. So, I'm asking for your help right now: Can you chip in your first $5 to help flip PA and save our democracy?