Sen. Joe Manchin (Independent, West Virginia) will not run for president, and when asked about the possibility of being Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, he gave a firm “no.”
Senator Participated CBS Morning The move came on Monday after President Joe Biden ended his candidacy as the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee and subsequently endorsed Harris as his first choice to succeed him.
WATCH — Manchin: Biden is being pushed by staff into ‘far-left’ positions he doesn’t believe in:
“I’m not going to be a presidential candidate,” Manchin said on the show. “I’m a candidate that basically speaks to the centrist part of this country.”
Manchin also Appeared CNN this morning He performed alongside Casey Hunt, dispelling speculation that he would run with Harris.
“Would you consider being Kamala Harris’ vice president?” Hunt asked the senator, who left the Democratic party this year.
“no,” Manchin He responded immediately: “I’m not the vice president. It’s the new generation. I don’t think we want a 76-year-old vice president right now.”
“So, do we want a 76-year-old president?” she responded.
“Well, if it makes him feel like he’s 50, maybe,” he said.
The comments come as Harris has emerged as the leading candidate for the nomination, with the support of both Biden and Clinton, as well as governors of key Rust Belt states.
WATCH — Manchin: “Biden has ‘dangerous’ numbers of unscreened migrants at U.S. border,” Democrats could have acted, Biden must act:
But President Barack Obama and others have not endorsed Harris, nor have House Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) or House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.).
At this time, Harris is the front-runner to win the nomination, with no rival in sight, but other names being mentioned alongside her as possible vice presidential candidates include Governor Andy Beshear (Democrat, Kentucky), Governor Roy Cooper (Democrat, North Carolina), Governor Gavin Newsom (Democrat, California), Governor JB Pritzker (Democrat, Illinois), Governor Josh Shapiro (Democrat, Pennsylvania), Governor Gretchen Whitmer (Democrat, Michigan), Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, and Senator Mark Kelly (Democrat, Arizona).
All of the above have endorsed Harris.
At the convention, 4,600 delegates will decide the Democratic presidential nominee, rather than the millions of voters who voted for Biden or two lesser-known Democratic candidates (Rep. Dean Phillips and self-help guru Marianne Williamson), or who did not vote in the Democratic primary because there was no real challenge to the incumbent president.
