"I love my country too much to vote for Donald Trump," Sen. Joe Manchin says
Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a Democratic moderate in a state former President Donald Trump won by nearly 40 points in 2020, criticized President Biden on Sunday, saying he'd "love to" push the president toward the middle and pointing to what he called the "crisis" at the southern border. But Manchin made clear that he wouldn't vote for Mr. Biden's most likely opponent come November.
"I love my country too much to vote for Donald Trump," Manchin told "Face the Nation."
- Transcript: Sen. Joe Manchin on "Face the Nation," Jan. 14, 2024
The West Virginia Democrat, who's been a reliable thorn in the Biden administration's side, often being the deciding vote on key legislative priorities, suggested that a Trump presidency would be "very detrimental" to the country.
But Manchin also wouldn't rule out his own White House ambitions, after months of teasing that he could launch a third-party bid and appearing with No Labels, a bipartisan group that's considered nominating its own candidate for the November ballot.
"I'm not going to be a spoiler, never have been and never will be. But people want options, or they want change," Manchin said. "So you got to see what comes."
Manchin explained on Sunday that he will "do whatever it takes" to "save" the country, saying he'll support whoever he believes can best help the country "come back to the common sense, sensible middle."
Nevertheless, Manchin appeared in New Hampshire on Friday — less than two weeks ahead of its nominating content — speaking to voters as part of a national "listening tour" he outlined when he announced he would not seek reelection in the Senate.
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Kaia Hubbard is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital based in Washington, D.C.
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