‘President’ Joe Manchin emerges

A West Virginia Democrat has emerged as a powerhouse centrist who is not afraid to push back on his own party against a $2 trillion spending bill, among other things. We’re talking about Sen. Joe Manchin, of course — deemed a commonsense lawmaker by the press and possibly even a “maverick” — a word often used in past years to describe John McCain, the late Arizona senator and longtime Republican leader. Earlier this year, CNN referred to Mr. Manchin as “the new John McCain.” But it’s gone a little farther than that. “Joe Manchin, the Democrats’ other ‘president,’ had an eventful 2021, Sen. Joe Manchin was practically an administration unto himself,” The Washington Post advised this week. “For the Democratic agenda, all roads go through West Virginia,” the Post noted, referring to the senator as “President Manchin.”… (Excerpts from the Washington Times)