Manchin: Another Trump Win Could Destroy Democracy

Senator says he'd 'absolutely' consider a presidential run
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 16, 2023 12:30 AM CST

Joe Manchin made his latest comments on the 2024 presidential election Wednesday on NBC News' Meet the Press, though as usual, he qualified them quite a bit. "I will do anything I can to help my country, and you're saying, 'Does that mean you would consider it?' Absolutely," he told Kristen Welker. "Every American should consider it if they're in a position to help save the country." He went on to suggest he'll first work to confirm voters are into his moderate politics. "I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure, to mobilize that moderate, sensible, commonsense middle," he said, suggesting he could appeal to centrists in both of the two major political parties, Axios reports. As for whether he'd run only as part of an official third party, he wouldn't say more than "I'm as independent as it [comes]."

But he was very clear on his concerns for America: "I'm totally, absolutely scared to death that Donald Trump would become president again," he said. "I think we will lose democracy as we know it." He said that while he has no concerns about President Biden's age or health, physically or mentally, he thinks Biden has gone too far to the left to appeal to centrist voters, and that he and Vice President Kamala Harris aren't the best choice to beat Trump. Manchin also pushed back against concerns his potential run could mess things up for Biden, saying he "would never be a spoiler." As for when a decision might be made, he seemed to suggest it could be awhile, pointing to Super Tuesday on March 5 as a potential deadline for his decision. (More Joe Manchin stories.)

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