Yesterday, Joe Manchin announced that he would not be running for reelection. Here's some of that announcement. >> Speaker 2: I got into politics because of an argument I had 40 years ago with my dad. Joe Manchin owned a furniture store in Farmington, West Virginia, a small coal mining town of hardworking people. [00:00:15] And one day our local state representative came in and asked dad for a favor, saying, you owe me for all the things I've done for your little town. When the man left, I turned to my dad and said, now wait a minute, isn't helping Farmington that man's job? That moment defined the difference between self service and public service. [00:00:35] When I told my dad that I was gonna run for office, he said, Joe, politics is a bad business, I'm telling you right now, stay out of it. But my dad said that he would support me running if I made a vow to serve all the people, friend or foe, and not just myself. [00:00:50] That promise made to my dad all those years ago has been my guiding light. After months of deliberation and long conversation with my family, I believe in my heart of hearts that I have accomplished what I set out to do for West Virginia. I've made one of the toughest decisions of my life and [00:01:07] decided that I will not be running for reelection to United States Senate. But what I will be doing is traveling the country and speaking out to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle and bring Americans together. To the West Virginians who have put their trust in me and fought side by side [00:01:27] to make our state better, it has been my honor of my life to serve you, thank you. Public service has and continues to drive me every day, that is the vow that I made to my father over 40 years ago, and I intend to keep that vow until my dying day. [00:01:45] >> Speaker 1: My, my, this West Virginia senator's Thursday announcement is refueling speculation and raising the question, will Manchin Run for president? The centrist Democrat could be seeking a third party presidential run, a move that would threaten both Democrats and republican hopes in 2024. [00:02:01] Per Forbes, Manchin has indicated for months he has not ruled out a presidential run. Speculation of a presidential run hit a boiling point in July after the three term senator announced he had raised $1.3 million during the second quarter this year. Far outpacing his Republican challengers Governor Jim justice and Rep Alex Money. [00:02:22] Manchin had racked up roughly 11.3 million as of mid-October, according to Politico. Last week, the 76 year old senator, who has at time sparred with Democrats and President Joe Biden teased a potential run at a town hall event with the centrist political group No Labels in New Hampshire, [00:02:40] where he told the crowd, if I get in a race, I'm going to win. Listen, I want to stop right here and say one thing, two things, three things, Sister. First, he ain't centrist, two, no label ain't centrist, and this idea that he told his dad he was gonna get into politics to be [00:02:57] a public servant, not a self servant person. All Joe Manchin did is be self servant, his family runs the Democratic Party, if you can call it that, in West Virginia. They have a stronghold on it, if you try to challenge them, they cripple you in all manners. [00:03:12] So I think this idea that he's running or continuing to run to be a public servant, we know this was not an announcement about his Senate race or his Senate career. This was a launching pad for that very potential run as a no label candidate talking about traveling around the country to band together the centrist. [00:03:31] You can't be a centrist in America right now, on one side you have racists screaming about all types of craziness. You have MTG and Donald Trump over there leading that side and then on the other side you have Democrats who are scared to speak truth to power. So, Sister Nina, what do you think about Manchin with this BS announcement when in [00:03:48] actuality we know it was nothing but a launching pad for his next carrier. >> Speaker 3: You were peeking in on my notes because you took all of my points, exactly, there is no trying to unify the middle, what middle? You cannot be in the middle in today's climate and anything in the middle, [00:04:07] you just get ran over. People have strong opinions about what is happening in this country, his quote, unquote, the middle is really the antithesis of what the American people are asking for. We know that poll after poll shows where the American people are on social political policy. [00:04:22] They are right where so called progressives are, they are not in the middle of this. They understand that the economy is not working for them, they understand that this type of politics is not working for them. And it's nothing about, they want to see bipartisanship, they want to see people in service of them. And your point about self service versus public service, I mean, [00:04:39] anytime you have a United States senator who really was the shadow president. So he was warming up already for what he's about to do, and yes, he will be a No Labels candidate. And it's just always curious to me, Mayor, of how this administration and those big talking neoliberals always got some smoke for progressives, but [00:04:58] they never have smoke for people like Joe Manchin or Kyrsten Sinema. Manchin was coddled by this president, He teased the run even before he just declared that he's not running again for US Senate. But make no mistake, he will be running again, he will be backed by No Labels, and [00:05:14] this is a senator who stood against enhancement of child tax credit. This is a senator that stood in the way of that half measure climate policy that this president had. I mean, you look at it, he was always there and they catered to him every step of the way, so the shadow president strikes again. [00:05:32] >> Speaker 1: Absolutely, and I think I take aim with the author of that article saying that this is gonna be a loss or a threat to Democrats or Republicans when in actuality it's a threat to American people. Joe Manchin and his policies and stances do nothing to benefit more Americans and the growing diversity in this country. [00:05:51] So I think it's absolutely ridiculous, even when he tried to deny it in an interview with CNN, we saw Manchin denied the rumors that the event in an early primary state was tied to a third party bid. In an interview with CNN, though, he added cryptically that he has not ruled out anything. [00:06:08] While one Manchin ally told the Washington Post on the condition of anonymity, he believed Manchin was seriously considering all options. Like I said, we know this type of politics, it serves one thing and one master, and it's that person, that person alone. Manchin has nothing to offer, Biden lied to black people in Georgia and all over [00:06:27] this country when he said, if I win this election, if you give me senators, two senators from Georgia, I'll put black people as a priority. And he sweared on his name that he didn't tell us that we would be held captive to this senator from West Virginia who now is about to sell out the party again. [00:06:42] And as you said, we see all types of crazy harms to our sisters that are members of the pack on the squad, but we don't see this coming towards Sinema and also Joe Manchin. >> Speaker 3: [CROSSTALK] They're especially not going to do that to Manchin, see, they're not going man to man like that. [00:06:58] See, it's easy to pounce on the squad members that are women and primarily women of color. Let me just be more direct, black women, but they ain't got that kind of smoke for Senator Joe Manchin. Never have and never will, he's been playing all up in their face this entire time making threats. [00:07:14] But, another point Mayor and we letting y'all behind the curtain here because, see, the Mayor and I, we don't mix, no point. We letting you know what this is all about, this is another important point. Manchin knew that he was gonna be doing this all along, that's number one. And the second point I want our viewers to understand is that Manchin was doing what [00:07:32] he was allowed to do. In other words, if this president really wanted to bump up against him and gas up the jet when he was acting a fool in that Senate and so called Thornton, President Biden's policy agenda, he would have gassed up the jet. But he didn't want to bump up against Manchin because Manchin and Sinema, [00:07:48] I'm throwing her in here, too. They were doing the bidding of neoliberal policymakers and they got a chance to hide behind Manchin and Sinema. One thing about it, they won't be able to hide behind mansion anymore, Mayor so it's gonna be interesting. >> Speaker 1: Yeah and I think, you know what, you're absolutely right. [00:08:05] And we should own that, we should make the party own that and this administration, to be more specific. The idea that one senator could hold up so much growth and so much process and progress is absolutely ludicrous to me. If had this been a Republican senator or had Joe Manchin been a black person, [00:08:20] he would have been ostracized for stopping the president agenda. Everything wrong with Biden's numbers in the polls and how people feel in this country, all the things he promised that didn't get done is absolutely at stake right here. This is what Joe Manchin said in a press statement, ahead of a No Labels event. [00:08:39] He said the goal of the meeting was intended to promote common sense solution to solve pressing issues facing our nation. Even though lawmakers on both sides of the aisle voice concern a third party candidate could sway voters away from either party. A handful of third party candidates have since launched bids, [00:08:55] including Independent Robert F.Kennedy Jr and Cornell west. As well as return Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who launched her bid Thursday. Listen, I want to say this and be clear, don't mess up the senator's word and my words. We are not against challenging President Biden in a primary, that's not what we're saying. [00:09:12] We absolutely agree that there needs to be a primary of this president, a primary of anybody, that is part of democracy. What we are saying, though, is don't be fooled by the Machin smoke because it ain't none there. >> Speaker 3: That's it, Mayor, please challenge, we wanna see a robust primary that's what primaries are all about, the exchange of ideas. [00:09:29] And to the extent that the Democratic Party is trying to shut down the primary process is a shame in and of itself. Now, the mayor and I get that the Democrats have an incumbent, got that? And so the primacy is going to go to an incumbent, got that? But to just totally shut down all debates, especially in light of the fact [00:09:49] that most Americans that have taken polls have been very clear that they don't wanna see a rematch between President Biden or President Trump. And Democrats, not the Mayor, not just the senator, Democratic voters are saying they do not want this current president to be the nominee, [00:10:07] asking the question, can we find anybody else? And so the arrogance within the Democratic Party is also, Mayor, gonna be something that is going to come and bite this party in the behind. Because they refuse to see the handwriting on the wall, but one thing about Manchin, [00:10:22] he hasn't been shy about letting them know what he may or may not do. Months ago, he said that all options were on the table for him, so this is of no surprise. Can you imagine, now we know that Lyndon Baines Johnson, President Johnson, hey, he wasn't no lover of black. [00:10:41] He owned tape and all that, calling us the N word and all that, a Southerner. But can you imagine President Joseph Biden being the one that has to push through the Civil Rights act and the Voting Rights act in the 60s, can you imagine that? I mean, it took a president with the chutzpah, [00:10:57] with all the warts of an LBJ to push through that kind of legislation. If it was left to the leadership of today, including this current president, black people will be SOL. >> Absolutely, we got to admit that, like you're saying, if Joe Biden was tasked [00:11:13] with that, we wouldn't be having this conversation, probably.