Joseph Anthony Manchin III (/ˈmæntʃɪn/ MAN-chin; born August 24, 1947) is an American businessman and retired politician who served as a United States senator from West Virginia from 2010 to 2025.

[41][42] AA Property is reportedly 50% controlled by Manchin, and has, among other things, been an investor in Emerald Coast Realty, which owns a La Quinta hotel in Elkview, West Virginia.

[55] Soon after the bond amendment's defeat, the state Division of Environmental Protection (DEP) revoked a permit approval for controversial new silos near Marsh Fork Elementary School in Raleigh County.

While area residents had complained for some time that the coal operation there endangered their children, Blankenship claimed that the DEP acted in response to his opposition to the bond amendment.

[97] In January 2022, The Hill reported that Manchin "spent heavily on private security" during the last three months of 2021 "as he became a prime target for progressive protesters angry at his role blocking a reconciliation package in the Senate".

He said that his decision was made "after months of deliberation and long conversations" with his family, adding that he would instead be "traveling the country and speaking out to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle and bring Americans together".

[105][40] On September 30, 2021, an MSNBC news reporter asked Manchin about his opposition to the Build Back Better Act, accusing him of having a conflict of interest with provisions within the bill: "Sir, the company you founded, Enersystems, provides coal to power plants that would be impacted by one of the proposals in the plan.

[130] On August 3, 2015, he broke with Democratic leadership by voting in favor of a Republican-sponsored bill to terminate federal funding for Planned Parenthood both in the United States and globally.

[138] In June 2018, upon Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy's retirement, Manchin urged Trump not to appoint a judge who would seek to overturn Roe v. Wade but to instead choose a "centrist".

[142] In May 2022, Manchin said that he would again vote against his party's bill, the Women's Health Protection Act, which included codifying federal abortion rights as the Supreme Court appeared poised to overturn Roe.

During appearances on Fox News, Republicans Mitch McConnell, Jim Justice, Jeff Van Drew, Bill Hagerty, and Tom Cotton each suggested that Manchin join their party.

[154] In August 2019, Manchin sent FCC Chairman Ajit Pai eight letters that contained results from speed tests across West Virginia as part of an effort to highlight incorrect broadband coverage maps in the state.

"[35] Opinions on the subject are mixed; The Charleston Gazette wrote, "the prospect that Manchin's $1.7 million-plus in recent Enersystems earnings might tilt him even more strongly pro-coal might seem remote, given the deep economic and cultural connections that the industry maintains in West Virginia.

[167] In 2012, Manchin supported a failed GOP effort to "scuttle Environmental Protection Agency regulations that mandate cuts in mercury pollution and other toxic emissions from coal-fired power plants", while West Virginia's other senator, Jay Rockefeller, did not.

[178] Manchin has co-sponsored balanced budget amendments put forth by Senators Mike Lee (R-UT),[179] Richard Shelby (R-AL), and Mark Udall (D-CO).

He referred to plans calling for ground troops in Syria, which had been proposed by some Republican senators, including Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, as "insanity,"[13] but supported the 2017 Shayrat missile strike launched by order of President Trump in response to a chemical weapons attack allegedly perpetrated by the Syrian Government.

Potential primary opponent Paula Jean Swearengin charged that because of Manchin's vote, weapons sold to the Saudis "could possibly end up in the hands of terrorists.

He also expressed concern "that the challenges plaguing the Chinese market—lack of transparency, currency manipulation, etc.—will bleed into the Chicago Stock Exchange and adversely impact financial markets across the country.

[200] In 2019, Manchin and Republican Marco Rubio drafted a Middle East policy bill with provisions that rebuked President Trump over withdrawals of troops from Syria and Afghanistan and a measure authorizing state and municipal governments to punish companies after they oppose Israel via boycott, divestment or sanctions.

The measure also reauthorized at least $3.3 billion for Israel's military financing in addition to extending Jordan's security aid, granting new sanctions on individuals giving their support to the Syrian government and ordering the Treasury Department to determine whether the Central Bank of Syria was money laundering.

[204] In October 2019, Manchin was one of six senators to sign a bipartisan letter to Trump calling on him to "urge Turkey to end their offensive and find a way to a peaceful resolution while supporting our Kurdish partners to ensure regional stability" and arguing that to leave Syria without installing protections for American allies would endanger both them and the US.

[208] Following the Sandy Hook shooting, Manchin partnered with Republican senator Pat Toomey to introduce a bill that would have strengthened background checks on gun sales.

[213] In 2016, referring to the difficulty of keeping guns out of the hands of potential terrorists in the aftermath of the Orlando nightclub shooting, Manchin said, "due process is what's killing us right now."

According to a White House official, Trump told Manchin of his "interest in getting a result" so dialogue could resume "to see if there's a way to create a reasonable background check proposal, along with other ideas.

[224] In September 2017, Manchin released a statement expressing that he was skeptical of a single-payer health care system being "the right solution" while noting his support for the Senate considering "all of the options through regular order so that we can fully understand the impacts of these ideas on both our people and our economy.

[221] In January 2019, Manchin was one of six Democratic senators to introduce the American Miners Act of 2019, a bill that would amend the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to swap funds in excess of the amounts needed to meet existing obligations under the Abandoned Mine Land fund to the 1974 Pension Plan as part of an effort to prevent its insolvency as a result of coal company bankruptcies and the 2008 financial crisis.

It also increased the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund tax and ensured that miners affected by the 2018 coal company bankruptcies would not lose their health care.

[234] Manchin voted to withhold funding for "sanctuary cities" and in support of President Trump's proposal to give a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, build a border wall, and reduce legal immigration.

[263][264] In March 2021, Manchin was the only Democrat to vote for a failed amendment to rescind funding from public schools that allow transgender youth to participate in the sporting teams of their gender identity.

In the op-ed, he also elaborated on his view of eliminating the filibuster: "I cannot explain strictly partisan election reform or blowing up the Senate rules to expedite one party's agenda.