Joe Manchin pours cold water on push to gut obstruction

Joe Manchin pours cold water on push to gut obstruction

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Manchin’s view is important because Democrats cannot force any changes to the rules without a unified caucus, since the House is divided by 50-50 and all Republicans are likely to oppose such changes.

Manchin told CNN “yes” that he was drawing a limit to maintain the 60-vote limit to defeat an obstructionist, even though many in his caucus wanted to reduce that limit to 51 votes to facilitate the advancement of legislation over a base party line .

“I’m still 60,” said Manchin. “That’s where I am. I haven’t changed.”

Manchin also rejected requests from proponents of obstruction rules to demand that 41 senators be present to support an obstruction.

“No, I’m still 60 years old. OK?” Manchin said, noting that these ideas “are all interesting”.

Some Democrats have called for specific exclusions from the obstruction rules – such as voting rights or civil rights legislation – to allow these measures to be presented by a simple majority in the Senate. But Manchin is also not in favor of this, arguing that minority rights must be maintained.

“This is a bit like being pregnant – maybe,” he said of that idea, an apparent reference to the saying “you can’t be half pregnant”.

Manchin is open to demanding that senators keep the floor and not just silently threaten an obstruction, something President Joe Biden endorsed on Tuesday. But he is clear that he will not weaken the power of Republicans to demand that a supermajority advance legislation at the end of that process.

“I think the most encouraging thing was that the President of the United States understood the importance of maintaining (the power) of the minority in the Senate.”

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