Democrats Expect Biden To Resume Talks With Manchin, Despite Manchin Comments

Senate Democratic leaders expect President Joe Biden to resume talks with moderate West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin on reviving the “Build Back Better” agenda, even after Manchin told reporters that there were no ongoing negotiations between him and Biden.

According to a report from The Hill, at a virtual Democratic meeting Tuesday afternoon, Senators agreed to “take a deep breath and step back from the heated debate over Biden’s sweeping climate and social spending plan to give Manchin some space” to restart negotiations between the two, after Manchin told Fox News’s Bret Baier that he would not vote in favor of the “Build Back Better” bill.

“Bret, this is a mammoth piece of legislation and I had my reservations from the beginning,” Manchin began, adding that he had been working every day to find a way to make the numbers work and find a compromise that would work for all involved.

“I’ve always said this, Bret: if I can’t go home and explain it to the people of West Virginia, I can’t vote for it, and I cannot vote to continue with this piece of legislation. I just can’t. I’ve tried everything humanly possible, I can’t get there,” Manchin said at the time.

Manchin’s December comments seemed to be the nail in the coffin for “Build Back Better,” but Democrats were optimistic that taking BBB out of the limelight would prove fruitful in negotiations. – READ MORE