To hell with Joe Manchin
With Democrats like Joe Manchin, who needs Republicans? The West Virginia Senator is at it again, this time refusing to support a reconciliation package containing provisions that would mitigate the climate crisis. The bill provides $300 billion in funding for climate and energy spending aimed at reducing greenhouse gases. It also provides tax incentives for clean energy and electric vehicle expansion. What’s not to love?
Manchin’s excuse is inflation and the deficit. But the inflation excuse has been completely debunked and the bill is 100% self-funding. Manchin’s crocodile tears about the deficit comes on the heels of his voting for a military budget of $778 billion, four times greater than the Build Back Better plan over 10 years, and $25 billion more than the President requested.
The real reason Machin is against the package is because he is heavily funded by the West Virginia coal lobby and he owns stock in the coal industry. Manchin has sold out the vulnerable people of West Virginia, the people of America and generations of Americans who will inherit the climate mess. And he did it for money. Manchin is one of the most repellant villains in America today. This coal baron is, in short, a fecal-ridden open sore of hypocrisy.
Because the United States Senate is divided down the middle with 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats, Manchin’s power in the Senate is disproportionately vast. He can ruin Democratic legislation with a single vote, and he frequently does. The reconciliation package could be the last chance for Democrats to pass climate change legislation before the midterms, and Manchin is prepared to ruin it in order to safeguard his power.
Thanks to Manchin, the United States will fall 25 to 35 percent short of the Paris Agreement goal of cutting emissions by 2030. This in turn could also mean that the U.S. won’t meet the goal of 100 percent emissions reductions by 2050. Climate experts say 100 percent is necessary to prevent some of the worst impacts of the climate crisis projected in the decades to come.
The notion that Manchin is a “moderate” Democrat is as absurd as the idea that Al Capone was a “moderate” Chicago businessman. Manchin is corrupt and evil and completely indifferent to the needs of his constituents. He’s in it for money and power and he doesn’t care who he hurts or how bad his selfish choices are for the climate. Joe Manchin is laughing all the way to his yacht. And, as ever, ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, comrades and friends, stay safe.
Robert Harrington is an American expat living in Britain. He is a portrait painter.