Jun 7, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Rep. Jamaal Bowman accuses Manchin of becoming "the new Mitch McConnell"

Orion Rummler

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) on Monday blasted Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) as an obstructionist "doing everything in his power to stop democracy" after the moderate Democrat said he would not support H.R. 1, the expansive election and anti-corruption bill.

Why it matters: House progressives are getting fed up with the White House's efforts to accommodate Republicans and Manchin, writes Axios' Jonathan Swan. Democrats believe they have a narrow window to change voting rules at the national level.

State of play: Manchin's opposition to the sweeping bill puts it in jeopardy in the evenly split Senate. He said he would support the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act in its place, and he denounced H.R. 1 as a partisan bill.

What he's saying: "Joe Manchin has become the new Mitch McConnell," Bowman said. "Mitch McConnell, during Obama's presidency, said he would do everything in his power to stop Obama. He's also repeated that now during the Biden presidency."

"And now Joe Manchin is doing everything in his power to stop democracy and to stop our work for the people."
"Manchin is not pushing us closer to bipartisanship, he is doing the work of the Republican Party by being an obstructionist, just like they've been since the beginning of Biden's presidency."

Go deeper: Progressive dam about to break

Add Axios on Google

Rep. Jamaal Bowman accuses Manchin of becoming "the new Mitch McConnell"

What to read next