Manchin, White House expected to continue BBB talks next year: report
Manchin and Biden spoke over the phone Sunday night following a dramatic public breakdown in negotiations
TrendMacro CIO Donald Luskin argues Democrats 'just want to put on a show' by slamming Sen. Joe Manchin given House representatives are up for reelection next year.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and President Biden will likely continue talks on the president's Build Back Better legislation next year, according to a report.
Manchin and Biden spoke over the phone Sunday night following a dramatic public breakdown in negotiations over a centerpiece of the president's agenda, Fox News has confirmed. The conversation was cordial and was ended with the understanding that the two sides would pick up negotiations in the new year, sources told Politico.
Senator Joe Manchin. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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The news comes after talks broke down between the two sides last week, with the White House warning Manchin Thursday that officials were preparing a statement singling him out as the source of the delay in passing the legislation. Manchin asked the White House to leave out his name, citing that his family had already been the target of abuse, but the White House named him anyway.
The statement reportedly spurred Manchin to snap at the White House and announce on Fox News that he was breaking off negotiations over the legislation permanently.
U.S. Senator Joe Manchin. (REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz) (Reuters Photos)
"When you have these things coming at you the way they are right now … I cannot vote to continue with this piece of legislation," Manchin told Fox News Sunday.
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The sudden announcement caught the White House off guard and prompted outrage in return, with White House press secretary Jen Psaki calling Manchin's comments an "inexplicable reversal in his position."
White House press secretary Jen Psaki. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon / AP Newsroom)
"If his comments on Fox and written statement indicate an end to that effort, they represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position and a breach of his commitments to the president and the senator’s colleagues in the House and Senate," Psaki said Sunday. "Just as Senator Manchin reversed his position on Build Back Better this morning, we will continue to press him to see if he will reverse his position yet again, to honor his prior commitments and be true to his word."
Manchin's office did not immediately respond to a Fox News request for comment.