Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) has let the world know where he stands on his party's bill to expand abortion rights nationwide ahead of today's vote.
The West Virginia Democrat told reporters that while he would vote for a bill that codified Roe v. Wade, the alternative proposed by his colleagues goes too far.
As The Hill's Jordain Carney reports:
Manchin's decision, which he had kept a tight lid on all week, means the bill will fall short of even getting 50 votes in the Senate, where it will be opposed by all Republicans. It would need 60 votes to advance.
While it wasn't expected to pass, there will now be bipartisan opposition.
“I was hopeful that the Democratic Party having control of the agenda would put a piece of legislation forward to codify Roe v. Wade,” Manchin told reporters. He added that polls show most Americans support Roe.
Yet even favorable surveys hide the nuances most Americans feel on the issue. And they are by no means conclusive.
Perhaps realizing the political reality, Manchin condemned the Women's Health Protection Act. He concluded by saying today's bill isn't about codifying Roe but expanding abortion.
According to the senator, it would “wipe 500 state laws off the books.”
Carney adds:
Manchin was also the only Democrat who voted against the bill earlier this year, but Wednesday's vote comes in the wake of a leaked Supreme Court draft that, if the Court's final decision, would strike down Roe v. Wade.
The draft decision has supercharged the fight over abortion on Capitol Hill, with Democrats pledging to use it as a key midterm issue.
Overall, Republicans remain confident that Democrats won't boost their voters' enthusiasm and swing voters won't like what many consider to be their increasing pro-abortion extremism.
Simply follow the word of the Constitution and let States decide their own path.
The Federal government shouldn’t be involved in State level legislation.
As far as G-d’s law…
I thought representatives were supposed to represent their constituencies, not their personal beliefs. Evidently not, as the majority of voting citizens are pro-choice.
My experience is that they support it up until a heartbeat. Most know that Partial birth or late term birth is murder. Now California wants women to be able to kill their baby 1 week after it’s born and call it an abortion. Sorry, but God has spoken and says, “NO!! You will not kill babies. People need to stop using abortion as birth control and get responsible!!
Depends on the poll. Depends on the state. Overturning Roe will simply return the “choice” to the states as it was and should be. The supreme court should not be making laws, but interpreting them. In fact polls are not representative of representative government. I realize that’s what all leftists would like us to believe that everything should be “democratic” where the population centers, which they control, would run rough shod over the rest of the country. But that is not how it works. As a rule “democratic” is a dog whistle used often by commies to call in the faithful. I assume you are one of them. Stop supporting murder. Stop breaking the law trying to intimidate justices, stop being a commie, pretty simple.