It's not the Democratic Party's fault that Manchin improbably survived the political realignment of West Virginia long enough to become an obstacle to their agenda.
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Replying to @beyerstein
I think it's reasonable to expect political parties to find ways to hold members in line for "existential" (Biden's characterization) issues -- that's the argument.
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Replying to @HeerJeet
Without a plausible point of leverage, the idea that Schumer or anyone else can “find ways” to make Manchin vote against his interests is magical thinking. It’s mushy “West Wing” fantasy that socialists disdain in so many normie Dems.
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Replying to @beyerstein @HeerJeet
I think Schumer should take more votes to put pressure on Manchin. But there are no magic wands. Manchin knows what his interests are and he’s not going to be seduced or bullied into signing his political death warrant.
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Replying to @beyerstein
Again, I recommend Ronald Brownstein's reporting, which indicates that Biden is abandoning democracy agenda for various reasons, one of which is that it clashes with his "unity" message. Liberals have to decide if they are okay with that.
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Replying to @HeerJeet
Does Brownstein explain how Biden could move Manchin? All this rhetoric about how Biden must move Manchin because it’s existential is fallacious without some plausible strategy to bring that about.
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Replying to @beyerstein
The question is not whether Biden can move Manchin. The question is whether democracy defense should be priority that Biden pushes or gives up on.. Biden said this was an "existential" issue but now wants to de-prioritize.
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Replying to @HeerJeet
Proximately, it comes down to whether Biden can move Manchin and Sinema. That’s the way democracy gets defended.
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Replying to @beyerstein
But if Biden has already decided the fight is not worth it and it's more important to get stimulus? Isn't that something liberals should be concerned about? There are consequences to declaring something existential & ducking fight.
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Replying to @HeerJeet
What evidence do we have that Biden decided it’s not worth it? He and Schumer are probably still working on the holdouts. I wouldn’t expect them to pick a big, public acrimonious fight with Manchin or Sinema—even if it’s their #1 priority. It wouldn’t be effective.
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I recommend Brownstein's latest piece in The Atlantic on this.
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Replying to @HeerJeet
Brownstein argues that Joe Manchin is the number one obstacle to preserving democracy. Persuading him is everything. We can't pass voter protection legislation unless the filibuster is reformed or abolished, and Manchin won't budge on the filibuster.
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Replying to @beyerstein @HeerJeet
All this handwringing about whether the Biden administration is "concerned" enough or whether they're willing to "push hard enough" is magical thinking without a clear plan to make that push effective.
2 replies 1 retweet 2 likes - Show replies
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