Author Topic: Manchin for President?  (Read 1206 times)

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Offline mountaineer

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Manchin for President?
« on: July 16, 2014, 04:44:08 pm »
This is from a newsletter published by a moderate W.Va. Republican, Bill Phillips:
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Manchin For President?

POLITICO's Huddle reports this morning that U. S. Senator Joe Manchin has not ruled out running for President.   The story by Scott Wong is below.

By Scott Wong (swong@politico.com or @scottwongDC)

IF HILLARY PASSES, MANCHIN FOR PRESIDENT? - Sen. Joe Manchin says a 2016 presidential run is "low on the totem pole," but he's not exactly ruling it out.

The West Virginia Democrat, a frequent critic of President Obama and perhaps the most conservative Democrat in the upper chamber, has already endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016. But if the former secretary of State takes a pass, expect to hear more about the former Mountain State governor - especially with former Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, another possible '16 hopeful from a red state, making some off-color remarks about gays and prostitutes.

Some Twitter accounts have popped up in the past week with the handles @NH4JoeManchin and @Iowa4JoeManchin - though he hasn't made trips to those early primary states. @DraftJoeManchin recently tweeted: "We think that Joe Manchin is the most gifted leader and the most unifying leader we could elect as our next President."

"It's very flattering. The bottom line is people are searching for somebody who's willing to fix things rather than talk about them," Manchin told your Huddle host on Tuesday. "It's something I haven't given an awful lot of thought about. I've been working hard trying to get [the Senate] to work. It's a shame. It really is a shame. It's a great country, and we have a lot of good people here, but somehow politics has trumped policy.

Told that Manchin's politics would probably be too conservative to win his party's nomination, he replied: "My politics are about as middle of the road and American as you can get. I keep saying I'm fiscally responsible and socially compassionate, and I think most Americans are."

A more likely scenario is that Manchin -- frustrated with Senate gridlock -- will run for the governor's mansion again in 2016. But is a presidential bid completely off the table? "I would think it's low on the totem pole," he said.

Those who've worked closely with Manchin say he's a talented politician who is beloved in his home state, even if he's far from a household name on a national level.

"I don't speak for Sen. Manchin, but if Secretary Clinton decides not to run the field will be as wide open as the Grand Canyon," said Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis, who served as Manchin's first chief of staff in his Senate office. "At that point, with his retail politicking skills, Manchin could make a real run against more mortal and less seasoned politicians.

"If she runs," Kofinis added, "it's almost impossible to see the realistic path how anyone on the Dem side beats her in a primary."
We officially have passed into Bizarro World. Manchin is a dolt.
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Offline mountaineer

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #1 on: July 16, 2014, 04:54:56 pm »
If he really gets serious about this, I'm going to blame him personally for his daughter's actions in moving an American corporation overseas, while whining about the American tax system her father has done nothing to reform (while claiming to be such a conservative, pro-business Democrat).
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Reluctantly, Patriot Flees Homeland for Greener Tax Pastures
By ANDREW ROSS SORKIN
NY Times
 July 14, 2014 9:20 pmJuly 15, 2014 9:37 am 


Heather Bresch grew up around politics. Her father is Joe Manchin, the Democratic senator from West Virginia and a former governor. She has heard him say repeatedly, “We live in the greatest country on Earth,” as he did in countless political advertisements. And it appeared to rub off on her: Ms. Bresch was named a “Patriot of the Year” in 2011 by Esquire magazine for helping to push through the F.D.A. Safety Innovation Act.

Ms. Bresch is the chief executive of Mylan, the giant maker of generic drugs.

Until now, Ms. Bresch ran an unabashedly proud American company based in a Pittsburgh-area suburb, one of a handful of success stories that kept the once-thriving steel city relevant.

But on Monday, Ms. Bresch announced plans to renounce her company’s United States citizenship and instead become a company incorporated in the Netherlands, where the tax rates are lower. She did so by agreeing to acquire Abbott Laboratories’ European generic drug business.

The deal is just the latest example of a so-called inversion — in this case, it’s actually called a “spinversion” — and may be the most surprising of such deals given Ms. Bresch’s family background.

Ms. Bresch says she entered the deal reluctantly, and she genuinely seems to mean it.

If Ms. Bresch’s deal is not a call to Washington to address what is clearly a growing trend that it has remained nearly silent on, the nation will most likely continue to lose large employers and taxpayers in droves to countries with lower tax rates. Almost 20 large United States companies have announced plans to give up their United States citizenship over the last two years. Just on Monday, the Irish drug maker Shire cleared the way for a merger with AbbVie, the drug maker based in Chicago, and Walgreen is considering an inversion through a deal with Alliance Boots, a European drugstore chain.

“It’s not like I’ve not been vocal and up there talking to anybody who’d listen to me,” Ms. Bresch told me in an interview about the crusade she had been on in Washington for years, talking to lawmakers about overhauling the corporate tax code to make United States companies more competitive. “But you know what they all say? ‘Yeah, uh huh, O.K. Uh huh.’ ”

She added: “We were one of the last ones in our sector to do this. So it’s not like I was blazing the trail. If you put on your business hat, you can’t maintain competitiveness by staying at a competitive disadvantage. I mean you just can’t. The odds are just not in your favor.”

She’s right about her competitors. Teva Pharmaceutical Products, which is based in Israel, and Actavis, which is now based in Ireland after a tax-driven acquisition of Warner Chilcott in 2013, pay much less in taxes.

Still, there’s something morally disconcerting about a company like Mylan, which is a beneficiary of United States taxpayers who pay for Mylan’s drugs through Medicaid and Medicare, leaving the country, in part, to pay less in taxes. (Ms. Bresch insists that the merger is being driven mostly by its strategic merits, and that the lower tax rate is just an added benefit.)

How much less will Mylan pay?

Ms. Bresch, who said the company’s current effective tax rate is about 25 percent, said the rate would come down to 21 percent in the first year of the deal and then move into the high teens after three to five years. Mylan will continue to pay taxes in the United States on its domestic profits, but not on its business operations abroad.

All of which raises an important question: Even if the United States were to revamp its corporate tax code, how low would the rate have to drop to be competitive and still raise enough revenue to pay for the services that citizens expect?

President Obama has proposed a top corporate rate of 28 percent, and a rate of 25 percent for manufacturers. However, that number would appear to be too high to hold on to the likes of Ms. Bresch. Even 20 percent — some Republicans have floated that number — might still be too high.

This tax-rate arbitrage among global companies creates a race to the bottom as countries try to outcompete one another until the rate becomes zero, a number that many shareholders might be thrilled about, but would be unlikely to produce enough money for the Treasury’s coffers. There have been proposals to curb inversions, but those are only short-term solutions.

When I raised the prospect that Mylan would still leave even if United States tax rates were lowered somewhat, Ms. Bresch stopped me.

“Well, I don’t think you can say that,” she said. “I would step back and say our starting point today is 35, right?” She added: “I can’t say as a starting rate what’s enough or not enough until you honestly are able to sit down and look at a holistic proposal because everything from manufacturing, physical assets, depending on how they would reform this in entirety, would be how it applies, regardless of what that starting point is.”

Ms. Bresch doesn’t appear hopeful about tax reform.

“Obama had the wherewithal to muscle through an entire health care reorganization, right?” she pointed out. “Like it, don’t like it, whatever. This tax reform is even, in my opinion, on a larger scale than that because it’s a global economy.” She added, “Our government, right or wrong, has taken the viewpoint of, ‘We’re not negotiating.’ It is what it is. I think that standoffish mentality around tax has now continued to compound and complicate this issue.”

But Ms. Bresch is even more nervous about the larger implications: “You know what makes me want to cry? I think whoever the next Facebook is, why would you ever start that company here in the United States?”

That’s tough love from the daughter of a United States senator, who learned of the deal on Monday for the first time.

So what does he think of the deal?

“I am always disappointed when American companies feel the need to move overseas because of the U.S. tax code,” Senator Manchin told me in a statement. “However, this decision is systemic of a larger problem with our corporate tax code that puts American companies at a disadvantage with their global competitors. Since the day I arrived in the Senate, I have been advocating for a complete overhaul of our tax system, and I will continue to work with my colleagues on ways to reform our tax code so we are competitive in a global market, and companies that manufacture and sell their products in America stay in America.”

So far, that’s much easier said than done.
**nononono*
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Offline Relic

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #2 on: July 16, 2014, 04:57:44 pm »
He's too white, too male.

Today's Americans see that as evil x 2.

Offline truth_seeker

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #3 on: July 16, 2014, 05:09:04 pm »
My fear for centrist dems, is they would become beholden to their partisan contributors, like government employee interests. And Carter ran as a centrist, but governed as an incompetent liberal.

Joe Manchin would surely destroy Cruz, if they met on the 2016 Potus ballot, as would virtually any democrat.
"God must love the common man, he made so many of them.�  Abe Lincoln

Offline mountaineer

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #4 on: July 16, 2014, 07:06:59 pm »
Joe Manchin would surely destroy Cruz, if they met on the 2016 Potus ballot, as would virtually any democrat.
Manchin is corrupt, a drunk and has kissed Obama's ring (his "moderate" protestations notwithstanding), and he isn't fooling anyone. I don't know why you brought up Cruz, as he wasn't mentioned in the article, but I'm not as sanguine Mojo could beat him.
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Offline jmyrlefuller

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #5 on: July 16, 2014, 07:18:52 pm »
He's too white, too male.

Today's Americans Democrats see that as evil x 2.
Fixed.

Although it probably won't be long before the two will become one and the same.
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Offline truth_seeker

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #6 on: July 16, 2014, 07:25:58 pm »
Manchin is corrupt, a drunk and has kissed Obama's ring (his "moderate" protestations notwithstanding), and he isn't fooling anyone. I don't know why you brought up Cruz, as he wasn't mentioned in the article, but I'm not as sanguine Mojo could beat him.
You are the WV expert, so I accept you have strong feelings about him.

I think the point of the article was a centrist democrat, so I merely opined that I see that as a political strategy, unlike if a candidate like Cruz (seen as extreme right) were the opponent.

See 1964, Johnson landslide over Goldwater.

What is the basis for calling Manchin a "drunk?"
"God must love the common man, he made so many of them.�  Abe Lincoln

Offline Chieftain

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #7 on: July 16, 2014, 07:31:51 pm »
There is a mad scramble out there in Dhimmie land to find a successor to Obama.  He seems to be backing Elizabeth "Fauxcahontas" Warren as his preferred candidate over the Hildebeest. 

Hillary went screaming down in flames on her book tour, with a number of major gaffes, and a firm idea about how much heat she is in for over Benghazi.  She has the support of the old Arkansas Mafia, but they are a shadow of their former selves, and very worried about how much responsibility for Obama's failed foreign policies are the direct responsibility of the Hildebeest.  She is nowhere near as popular as she was during the 2008 Primary, and I do not believe that Obama's large African-American base will support her, specifically for racial reasons.

Joe Manchin might be a good Democrat candidate at some point, but that would mean he would have to run against most of what Obama has done, and that means the Democrat Party and all of their splinter groups would drop him like a bad habit.  Any suggestion of him running as a Republican is simply ridiculous.

The far left has not gone away, but they will not see another candidate like Obama again in their miserable lifetimes.  The left has had its best shot and are about to be left high and dry again, while guys like Manchin will be left to kick the bloody guts out of the middle of the floor and assess what is left, post-Obama.


Offline mountaineer

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #8 on: July 16, 2014, 07:38:23 pm »
What is the basis for calling Manchin a "drunk?"
Reports I've gotten from people in Charleston who were around him a lot during his gubernatorial years.
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Offline Chieftain

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #9 on: July 16, 2014, 07:53:16 pm »
Reports I've gotten from people in Charleston who were around him a lot during his gubernatorial years.

Alcohol and Presidential candidates are no strangers....and of course we have a Choomer in the Oval Office now.....




Offline olde north church

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #10 on: July 17, 2014, 12:38:55 am »
Alcohol and Presidential candidates are no strangers....and of course we have a Choomer in the Oval Office now.....

But many Americans are more accepting of the homosexual lifestyle these days.
Why?  Well, because I'm a bastard, that's why.

Offline katzenjammer

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #11 on: July 17, 2014, 01:53:25 am »
If he makes a run, he may get some mileage out of something like this:


Offline mountaineer

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #12 on: July 17, 2014, 12:56:38 pm »
Mojo proved yesterday he's still Obama's lackey, voting to overturn the S.Ct. ruling on Hobby Lobby:
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Senate Republicans successfully blocked a Democratic attempt at restoring free contraception for women who get their health insurance from companies that object on religious grounds.

The Democratic bill, sponsored by U.S. Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Mark Udall, D-Colo., to reverse the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Hobby Lobby case failed to gain the 60 voted needed to overcome a Republican filibuster, and was defeated in a 56-43 vote.

West Virginia’s U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin and Jay Rockefeller voted in favor of the bill. Three Republicans, Mark Kirk of Illinois, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine voted with Democrats in favor of the bill.

Manchin explained his support of the bill in a statement.

“Today, I voted in support of overturning the Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby decision that ruled for-profit companies can opt out of providing contraceptives to their employees because of religious beliefs,” Manchin said. “As Governor and U.S. Senator, I have always fought to protect the sincerely-held religious views of non-profit organizations, like soup kitchens, colleges, hospitals and similar non-profit organizations. However, for-profit corporations do not have the same legal privileges as non-profits, and therefore they should not have the same protections as non-profits recognized by law as being a religious organization. This legislation strikes a balance between allowing non-profit organizations to hold onto their religious views while ensuring that Americans have access to safe, affordable and reliable preventative health benefits.”
WCHS
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Offline Fishrrman

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #13 on: July 18, 2014, 01:40:23 am »
[[ Manchin for President? ]]

Say it ain't so, Joe.

You're dreamin'....

Offline mountaineer

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Re: Manchin for President?
« Reply #14 on: July 25, 2014, 10:42:39 am »
This is odd.
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Thursday, July 24, 2014
Sen. Manchin’s brother sues him; details unclear
 By Kate White, Staff writer

 Sen. Joe Manchin is being sued by his brother — but it’s unclear why, because the Marion County Circuit Clerk refused Thursday to release a copy of the complaint.

Dr. John Manchin II also is suing his youngest brother, Rock Manchin. Reached at his clinic in Fairmont, John Manchin referred questions about the lawsuit to his attorney, Morgantown lawyer Michael Benninger, who did not return multiple phone calls Thursday.

Marion County Circuit Clerk Rhonda Starn told her employees “to transfer all incoming calls regarding this case directly to her,” Leann Jones, a clerk in Starn’s office, said Thursday morning. Starn did not return a phone message left at 10:45 a.m. and did not answer several phone calls throughout the day.

Starn’s office has a policy that lawsuits remain private until a defendant is served, according to Jones. Another clerk in Starn’s office said the lawsuit might not be public for 20 to 30 days.

A Gazette reporter notified officials with the West Virginia Supreme Court about the county’s policy. Officials with the Supreme Court, which oversees all circuit courts in West Virginia, contacted Starn’s office.

At about 4:45 p.m., Robin Tucker, Starn’s deputy clerk, called the Gazette and said the clerk’s office closed at 4:30 p.m. and that a reporter could obtain a copy of the lawsuit at 8:30 a.m. Friday for $1 a page. The amount must be paid by cash or money order before a copy is provided, Tucker said. Circuit clerk offices throughout the state usually provide information and, if they charge anything, send a bill.

“Honey, we don’t bill. We have no way to bill,” Tucker said. “All of the information is in our system. You’re welcome to look at it in the morning.”

Jonathan Kott, spokesman for Sen. Manchin, said the lawsuit was a family matter and declined to comment.
http://www.wvgazette.com/article/20140724/GZ01/140729522/1104#sthash.bTPQf3vX.dpuf
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