Sen. Joe Manchin (DW.Va.) admitted Monday that he was taken by surprise when Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and other Senate Republicans decided to stand oppose his licensing reform bill, meaning it will likely land on the Senate floor this week.
Manchin said he expects Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), an outspoken progressive, and other “far left” liberals to oppose his legislation to limit the federal agency’s power to review new energy projects, but was stunned when Republicans also came out in opposition last week.
“I never thought I would have Bernie and some of the far left,” he told Fox News host Neil Cavuto in an interview Monday. “What I didn’t expect was that Mitch McConnell and my Republican friends would pass over Bernie or try to achieve the same result by refusing to authorize reform.”
Manchin warned that this week’s vote in the Senate could be the last chance to pass authorizing reform in the foreseeable future and expressed dismay that his bill is now likely to be defeated because Republicans are angry. , he reached an agreement with Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer. (DN.Y.) to reform the corporate tax code and spend hundreds of billions of dollars to fight climate change.
“I never see him coming back. People just won’t be there at all,” he said.
Manchin pointed out that he had repeatedly voted with Republicans to allow reform bills during his 12 years in the Senate and said that now that Democrats are ready to vote for a reform bill, fellow Republicans should join them.
“Whenever there was an enabling reform, I would vote for it. I was the only Democrat. Now all of a sudden we have a majority of Democrats, an overwhelming majority of Democrats, who will support a very balanced procedure. Is it a perfect invoice? No. Does it move the needle? Absolutely,” he said.
He said his bill would allow energy companies to get their products to market in one to three years instead of five to 10 years.
Manchin said he doesn’t understand why Republicans would block his licensing reform bill simply because of his vote for the Cut Inflation Act, which implemented a minimum corporate tax. by 15%, allocated $369 billion to fight climate change and empowered Medicare to negotiate reductions in prescription drugs. prices.
“That’s the only thing we’ve done on taxes,” he said on Fox. “We’re just trying to get companies that haven’t paid anything to pay at least 15%.”
He marveled at his sudden drop in popularity among his Senate GOP colleagues.
“You can be a hero one day and a villain the next,” he said, referring to the praise he received from Republicans after sinking Biden’s Build Back Better framework in December.
He blamed the GOP opposition on politics more than political differences.
“[If] politics get in the way, I’m sorry,” he said.