West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin did everything short of declaring a 2024 presidential run.
Appearing on several Sunday talk shows, Manchin was repeatedly pressed on whether he planned to announce his candidacy. Manchin refused to answer when asked point blank but gave strong hints that he is considering entering the race. The moderate Democrat said a growing number of people are looking for a voice in the middle to unite the nation.
“First of all, I’m worn out,” Manchin told host Dana Bash on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “The people are tired, sick and tired, of the fighting and division that we have and dividing the country. Abraham Lincoln said, divided, we cannot stand. We cannot … have a divided country, and we cannot withstand that. We have to come together. We’re the United States.”
“There’s a movement going on that people want to bring the extremes back to the sensible and reasonable, responsible middle,” he added.
“Do you want to lead that movement in a bid for president?” asked Bash.
Manchin did not answer, continuing his point.
“I’m trying to get a dialogue to where people are saying, ‘come on, this is ridiculous,'” he said. “Don’t force people to go to the extremes. No one runs their life this way. Let’s come back to the middle. It’s the United States of America. It’s about our country. Everyone’s worried about their own political future. I’m worried about the country.”
Democrat Senator Joe Manchin repeatedly dodges on if he's considering a run for president in 2024: "There's a movement going on" pic.twitter.com/0sOuOlkbxW
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In another appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Manchin said news headlines about former President Donald Trump’s indictment distract from geopolitical unrest around the world, the budget and debt crises, inflation, and energy security. Host Chuck Todd remarked that Manchin sounded “like a presidential candidate,” and pushed him again.
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“When you’re asking me what I’m going to do and what my political ambitions would be, it’s to make the country work together and be a United States and not the divided states,” Manchin responded. “I’m going to do whatever I can to have a voice in that middle, that we can basically force both sides to say, ‘Wait a minute, you’ve gone to extremes. You’ve got to start coming back. You’ve got to find ways to solve problems.’ You can’t solve them from the extreme right and the extreme left. You can’t make people, make a — pick a side.”
Asked directly if he is running, Manchin again deflected.
“I’m not ready to do anything this year,” he said. “Only in America does the next election start the day after the last election ended. I don’t do that. I’ve got a lot of work to do this year, and I’m going to work with everybody.”
“My filing date is January 15, 2024, and I will make my decision before that, but not until the end of the year, I can assure you,” he added.