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Dana Bash Accuses Joe Manchin of Being in the Tank for Big Business and He Got FURIOUS

The famed and self-annointed second most powerful person in the country, Joe Manchin, went on CNN this morning to be interviewed by Dana Bash, who – we could say, bashed him, but we won’t. She did get right up into Manchin’s face about whether or not Manchin is actually a Democrat or whether he’s bought and paid for by the extraction industry. If he is a corporate shill, they got one hell of a bargain in him. And a good purchase, what with holding up all the reform and voting rights. Manchin is worth 50 Republican Senators.

So Bash had at him, first quoting AOC:

“I’m sure you’ve heard what your fellow Democrat, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said about you in a tweet. ‘Manchin has weekly huddles with Exxon and is one of many senators who gives lobbyists their pen to write socalled bipartisan fossil fuel bills. It’s killing people. Our people. At least 12 last night. Sick of this ‘bipartisan’ corruption that masquerades as clear-eyed moderation.'”

“That’s your fellow Democrat. Is it true, that you have weekly meetings with Exxon and other companies?”

Pretty straightforward, enough to get Manchin angry:

“Absolutely not. I keep my door open for everybody. That’s totally false. Those type of superlatives, it’s just awful, that continue to divide, divide. I don’t know that young lady really well. I met her one time between sets but that’s it. We’ve not had any conversations. she’s speculating and saying things.”

Bash wasn’t letting him off that easily and rightly so. He said his door was open to anybody. Well, that anyone would include something like Exxon:

“She’s not the only one,I’m sure you’ve heard a number of fellow Democrats say you’re opposed to this because you’re bought and paid for by corporate donors.”

Manchin continued to plead that none of this was fair to him:

“It makes no sense at all. I gave you the facts. You’re entitled to your own facts — I mean your own opinions — you’re just not entitled to create your own facts to support it. That’s exactly what they’re doing.”

HIs said his door was open to anyone, that may be a fact, but it doesn’t really go to her question. We say that only because it does seem like an obvious fact that Manchin is the only Democrat unwilling to do the Democratic work that needs to be done. We are rather tired of it.

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