Colleagues of Sen. Joe Manchin III, D-W.Va., have been informed that the senator plans to run for re-election in the fall, allaying concerns that the seat would be turned over a Republican.
Manchin notified aides of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y, of his decision, after expressing dissatisfaction to Schumer and others that “this place sucks.”
“I was very vocal,” Manchin said, according to the New York Times. He noted, “they read between the lines.”
Manchin said witnessing the bipartisan efforts of moderates who helped reach a solution to end the partial government shutdown confirmed “more than anything” he made the correct decision to run again.
“That just reaffirms that, goddamn it, the place is much better than we give it credit for,” Manchin said.
Manchin said Trump had requested to discuss with him and Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala., ways to move forward in a bipartisan fashion on immigration and infrastructure on Monday. Jones is a Democrat in a red state as well and also voted for the stopgap spending measure on Friday.
“They want to get moderates and make sure we can get something done,” Manchin said.
Manchin was one of the few Democratic senators that voted in favor of the stopgap spending bill on Friday, despite the fact it did not include provisions for those covered by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The measure, which would have kept the government open until Feb. 16, did not gain enough support in the Senate, leading to a partial shutdown that ended Tuesday.
Trump signed a temporary spending bill Monday night, after both houses in Congress approved the bill earlier in the day. The bill will keep the government open until Feb. 8.
Manchin signaled that he would turn in the paperwork to run for office on Friday in person at the State Capitol in Charleston.
