West Virginia’s maverick senator declined to say if he would endorse President Joe Biden if he runs for reelection in 2024.
“Jake, I’m not getting involved in any election right now. 2022, 2024, I’m not speculating on it,” Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., replied to a question from CNN anchor Jake Tapper.
State of the Union posted a video excerpt of Manchin’s appearance on the liberal network’s Sunday broadcast.
“President Biden says he plans to run for re-election in 2024,” CNN host Tapper said. “You have not yet committed to supporting him in 2024. Do you think President Biden deserves a second term?”
“Jake, I’m not getting involved in any election right now,” replied Manchin, “2022, 2024, I’m not speculating on it.”
“President Biden is my president right now, and I’m going to work with him and his administration to the best of my ability to help the people in my state of West Virginia and this country,” he added.
Manchin’s response added him to the list of Democrats who have declined to declare if they would support a Biden reelection run in 2024.
In June, Democrat Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, N.Y.-14th C.D., sidestepped a question about supporting the president’s reelection.
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Ocasio-Cortez told CNN in June. “Should he run again, we’ll take a look at it. Right now we need to focus on winning a majority instead of a presidential election.”
Rep, Tom Malinowski, D-N.J., was asked a similar question in a town hall, according to a Fox News report.
“I don’t know if he’s running in 2024 or who’s running,” Malinowski said, “so I’m not going to opine on who should be president.”
Another Democrat in Congress went further, saying the president should step aside and make way for younger blood in the party.
“The country would be well-served by a new generation of compelling, well-prepared, dynamic Democrats who step up,” said Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn, who is himself seeking reelection in November.
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