SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is up for re-election in 2018. (Photo: Third Way Think Tank/flickr/cc)
'Traitor': West Virginia Democrat Manchin Under Fire for Pro-Sessions Vote
"Manchin, by voting Sessions, voted for race-based voter suppression. He's a traitor to his voters and the party."
Feb 09, 2017
Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia is under fire Thursday for his Wednesday evening vote to confirm Jeff Sessions as U.S. attorney general.
According to Guardian political reporter Ben Jacobs, Manchin "flash[ed Sessions] a thumbs up on his way in the chamber," before breaking with his party to cast the only Democratic vote in favor of Sessions' confirmation.
The social media outcry against the conservative Democrat, who is up for re-election in 2018, was swift:
\u201cExtremely tempted throw my family in the car, move to West Virginia and spend the next 23 months doing everything possible to unseat Manchin\u201d— Sally Kohn (@Sally Kohn) 1486610717
\u201cI know Joe Manchin represents WV, but protecting civil rights must be bedrock principle of Dem Party. Disgusted by his vote for Sessions\u201d— Ari Berman (@Ari Berman) 1486600625
A number of observers noted that Manchin's daughter, Heather Bresch, was chief executive of the pharmaceutical company Mylan when it dramatically hiked the price of EpiPens. The matter is currently being investigated by the Department of Justice, which Sessions will now helm.
\u201cJoe Manchin daughter is being investigated by the justice department.. \ud83e\udd14\ud83e\udd14 Jeff Sessions will make it go bye-bye.\n\nAnymore more questions??\u201d— Rob (@Rob) 1486604269
Manchin was also among a handful of Democrats to vote "yes" on the confirmation of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia is under fire Thursday for his Wednesday evening vote to confirm Jeff Sessions as U.S. attorney general.
According to Guardian political reporter Ben Jacobs, Manchin "flash[ed Sessions] a thumbs up on his way in the chamber," before breaking with his party to cast the only Democratic vote in favor of Sessions' confirmation.
The social media outcry against the conservative Democrat, who is up for re-election in 2018, was swift:
\u201cExtremely tempted throw my family in the car, move to West Virginia and spend the next 23 months doing everything possible to unseat Manchin\u201d— Sally Kohn (@Sally Kohn) 1486610717
\u201cI know Joe Manchin represents WV, but protecting civil rights must be bedrock principle of Dem Party. Disgusted by his vote for Sessions\u201d— Ari Berman (@Ari Berman) 1486600625
A number of observers noted that Manchin's daughter, Heather Bresch, was chief executive of the pharmaceutical company Mylan when it dramatically hiked the price of EpiPens. The matter is currently being investigated by the Department of Justice, which Sessions will now helm.
\u201cJoe Manchin daughter is being investigated by the justice department.. \ud83e\udd14\ud83e\udd14 Jeff Sessions will make it go bye-bye.\n\nAnymore more questions??\u201d— Rob (@Rob) 1486604269
Manchin was also among a handful of Democrats to vote "yes" on the confirmation of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
Deirdre Fulton
Deirdre Fulton is a former Common Dreams senior editor and staff writer. Previously she worked as an editor and writer for the Portland Phoenix and the Boston Phoenix, where she was honored by the New England Press Association and the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. A Boston University graduate, Deirdre is a co-founder of the Maine-based Lorem Ipsum Theater Collective and the PortFringe theater festival. She writes young adult fiction in her spare time.
Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia is under fire Thursday for his Wednesday evening vote to confirm Jeff Sessions as U.S. attorney general.
According to Guardian political reporter Ben Jacobs, Manchin "flash[ed Sessions] a thumbs up on his way in the chamber," before breaking with his party to cast the only Democratic vote in favor of Sessions' confirmation.
The social media outcry against the conservative Democrat, who is up for re-election in 2018, was swift:
\u201cExtremely tempted throw my family in the car, move to West Virginia and spend the next 23 months doing everything possible to unseat Manchin\u201d— Sally Kohn (@Sally Kohn) 1486610717
\u201cI know Joe Manchin represents WV, but protecting civil rights must be bedrock principle of Dem Party. Disgusted by his vote for Sessions\u201d— Ari Berman (@Ari Berman) 1486600625
A number of observers noted that Manchin's daughter, Heather Bresch, was chief executive of the pharmaceutical company Mylan when it dramatically hiked the price of EpiPens. The matter is currently being investigated by the Department of Justice, which Sessions will now helm.
\u201cJoe Manchin daughter is being investigated by the justice department.. \ud83e\udd14\ud83e\udd14 Jeff Sessions will make it go bye-bye.\n\nAnymore more questions??\u201d— Rob (@Rob) 1486604269
Manchin was also among a handful of Democrats to vote "yes" on the confirmation of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.