While Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-WV) daughter has urged him to run for president as a third-party candidate under the No Labels ticket, former President Bill Clinton (D) has conveyed fears to Manchin that such a candidacy could help propel former President Donald Trump to the White House, according to a report.
The Washington Post reported that over Labor Day weekend, Manchin received dueling advice from his daughter, Heather Bresch, and Clinton during conversations in the Hamptons regarding his political future.
Heather is vehemently pushing for her father to run for president of the United States, according to the Post’s sources:
But Heather Bresch, Manchin’s daughter who was the CEO of a pharmaceutical company, is strongly encouraging her father to run for president with the backing of No Labels, a bipartisan group recruiting a Democrat and a Republican to potentially run on a third-party ticket in next year’s presidential election. Manchin has long supported No Labels, once serving as an honorary co-chair of the group and headlining a July event sponsored by the group in New Hampshire.
During a meeting, Clinton expressed worry that Manchin’s potential candidacy could hurt the Democrat nominee and help Trump into the White House. For these reasons, he “aggressively” cautioned Manchin against launching a third party.
“Beyond that, Clinton largely listened as the family discussed the various options, one of the people familiar with the conversation said,” wrote Tyler Pager and Michael Scherer.
Along with possibly running for president, Manchin’s future holds two potential other paths: calling it a career in American politics or running for reelection in West Virginia, where he likely faces an uphill battle against popular Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV).
Notably, a Morning Consult poll in July found that Manchin had the second-worst approval rating of all U.S. Senators, behind only Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Breitbart News reported. Manchin’s approval rating registered at 39 percent, while 55 percent of West Virginians disapproved of him.
According to the Post, Manchin has been “adamant” in private conversations with Democrat donors that he would have to run as an Independent to win reelection as West Virginia turns increasingly red.
After Justice filed his intent to run with the Federal Election Commission in April, Manchin released a statement declaring, “I will win any race I enter,” spurring conversations around a potential White House bid.
Speaking at the No Labels forum in New Hampshire in July, Manchin expressed a similar sentiment.
“I’ve never been in any race I’ve ever spoiled. I’ve been in races to win,” Manchin said. “And if I get in a race, I’m going to win.”
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