‘Refreshing’: Smerconish reacts to Manchin’s move

The Covid-19 relief bill only passed after Democrats satisfied the concerns of Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV). CNN's Michael Smerconish says to see such a raw exercise of independent power is rare and refreshing.
#CNN #News

99 comments

    1. @Manon France I don’t think Joe Biden’s handlers will allow him to have a press conference on his own, not after that disastrous CNN townhall the other day.

    2. Mara, if Manchin didn’t vote for the COVID RELIEF BILL, people wouldn’t get all the benefits that are coming. No Republicans voted for the bill. Many businesses suffered serious financial losses due to pandemic situations. Many employees lost their jobs and many were laid off. When we have a severe downturn in the economy is not the time to suddenly raise the minimum wage to $15/ hr. Biden never said the minimum wage would suddenly go to $15. He said it would be raised over time. Now, everyone is demanding $15 right now. Biden said that by May, all adults will have had a chance to be vaccinated. COVID cases will go down extensively. Businesses can return to normal. Then they need a chance to recover financially before there is an increase in the minimum wage. Everywhere I read comments, people are demanding this increase NOW. Why don’t people understand that we have been in a severe downturn in the economy and, right now, many businesses couldn’t afford to pay more. Many have barely survived and many already went out of business. We need a chance for businesses to restore profitability before they can afford to increase wages.

    3. @Dog Poo Fairy your name says it: dog poo. Don’t you watch TV? I have seen Biden talking on TV nearly everyday or frequently. He sounds fine. And he is very intelligent expressing.

    1. @Kevin Needham If you’ve served your time, you’ve served your debt to society. Unlike the insurrectionists who also got checks

    2. John McCain was trash too, he voted with his Republican colleagues 86% of time and supported most of their destructive agenda

    3. @imouse1 no. They’re actually sending checks to those in prison. Republicans proposed an amendment to not allow this. Democrats shot it down.

    4. @Kevin Needham Because you can still have taxable income even if ou’re in prison. Not just the people who work for the prison system but those on work release. If you have paid taxes, you are getting a stimulus check.

  1. Joe Manchin is not even a dem only in name he has no place in the party anymore stop acting like he’s this independent looking out for his constituents in WV..

    1. @M Igorpan20 So, he thinks independently when he votes with Republicans but when Republicans vote down party lines they’re…also free thinkers?

    2. He’s not doing his constituents justice. Alot are struggling and he apparently doesn’t care.

  2. It’s a bit bullshit to. say it’s refreshing for the Dems to dissent when the party-line rule has been working for the Republicans the last 30 years.

    1. Disgusting. Call your cable provider, tell them you want to replace CNN with another channel or otherwise you will drop them.

    2. The Dems have two sub parties within the group (progressives and moderates). Left and center field. The first bill passed for Biden administration, and people need to keep fighting for wages at a later time. Next, kill the filibuster, reach your target of 100,000,000 + vaccinated in 100 days, and pass legislation on voting HR 1-John Lewis legislation, and bring back minimum wage debate/legislation next year before the 2022 elections. Let politicians explain their position then, fresh in a voters mind before voting !

  3. Manchin is a hack. He voted in his own self interest, not for the people he serves. Nothing to applaud there.

    1. @N F – Biden is fighting against the good of Americans. That’s what’s painful, for all Americans.

    2. AND THAT’S WHY WEST VIRGINIA THE STATE HE REPRESENTS IS ONE OF THE IF NOT THE POOREST STATE IN AMERICA & PER CAPITA THE #1 STATE FOR DRUG OVERDOSES TOO BUT HE ACTS LIKE THEY DON’T NEED THE MONEY & HELP MORE THAN EVERYBODY ELSE!! DAMN COUNTRY DUMB FOOL!!✌😅😂🤣

  4. Smerconish has no clue about suffering…he got into college because of legacy not ability and he’s proud of that fact.

  5. “let them eat cake” – out of touch tyrants and republicans

    1. If you stay Democrat, you won’t be able to afford bread.
      Did you know in Canada, a Socialist country, the taxes on EVERYONE is 40%
      No thanks

    1. Disgusting. Call your cable provider, tell them you want to replace CNN with another channel or otherwise you will drop them.

  6. I guess it is refreshing for some people that are already doing just fine to see people who are struggling continue to struggle.

    1. Disgusting. Call your cable provider, tell them you want to replace CNN with another channel or otherwise you will drop them.

    2. The democratic serpent left antichrist network is your extinction, genius, they just stole the office and need a little time to end your brainwashed existence with all their genocide programs.
      All satans children are no exception, you’re an expendable skidmark as wolves eat other wolves in the demonic cycle of chaos..

    3. Yes, and all the millions of people destroyed by fake covid lockdown and you brainwashed patsies who wear a sissy mask when you tinkle

  7. This isn’t about being strong enough to go against your party especially when what your party is doing benefits the people YOU are suppose to represent. Manchin is against the $15 dollars an hour because it doesn’t benefit him infact the opposite. He gets paid nearly $200,000 a year , but he doesn’t want struggling working families, many working & having to claim benefits too to get a lousy $15 an hour. Tax payers are subsidising low paid workers wages whilst the Corporations they work for are banking millions/billions in profits, how does that make sense?!!!!

    1. @Diane Bannister Yah, we know that. Which is why the bill that was introduced staggered the wage raise over a 5 year period and offered tax cuts and and exemptions for businesses with fewer the 500 employees.
      You didn’t even read the legislation before you decided to simp for the oligarchy. Which leads me to believe that you are neither working class nor a small business owner. You just feel the need to rationalize the irrational by pitting small business owners and their employees against eachother so you don’t have to think about how you may contribute to a deeply unfair and exploitative society.

    2. @Diane Bannister I’m sorry you’ve been hit by this. Yes the raise is over years not weeks and many places are actually paying higher than the minimum wage rate already, but it’s not going to double on day one and no , businesses that have been hit hard by this will need a long time to get back to normal.

    3. @Diane Bannister Ahh yes, it must be so emotionally taxing to have to repeat yourself over and over again about an issue you know nothing about nor affects you in anyway.
      Quick thought experiment, just so I know what type of person I’m dealing with here.
      Let’s say there is a little girl in your neighborhood who started up a lemonade stand because she had a debilitating disease that cost a lot of money to treat. Would you;
      1. Hand her a $20, praise her hard working attitude and hope for the best
      2. Question why tf you live in a society where a child has to break literal child labour laws to live.
      People love to act like every American is guaranteed life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. While ignoring the fact that millions of people in America will spend their entire lives accumulating debt and living in abject poverty because their employers don’t believe they deserve the dignity of a living wage.
      Did you ever stop to think how messed up it is that many of the same people who are deemed as essential workers during this pandemic aren’t even considered worthy of basic necessities and that they are at the bottom of the vaccine list?

    4. @Name Name how insulting you are telling me I am talking about an issue I know nothing about and other insults to me. It’s not worth my time to respond any further to you. It’s a waste of time because you showed exactly who you are.

    5. @Diane Bannister It’s all good. I was 99% sure you were going to clutch your pearls and deflect instead of addressing the legitimate criticisms I put forward no matter what I said. You should know that people like me find it equally offensive when people like you dehumanize us to the point that you don’t think we deserve to live a dignified life. We work just as hard if not harder then everyone else. I hope you realize that one day.

    1. ruth depew thy should fire him then. Otherwise, call you cable provider and demand to replace CNN with another Chanel or drop their services

    2. CNN has “donors” according to this turd lol. Fact check: CNN is the largest news outlet in the world.

    3. JOE BUDEN WON THE ELECTION!!! STOP THE TRUMPSTER LIES!!!!! VOTE JOE2024 LETS KEEP AMERICA SAFE WITH BUDEN

    4. @M Hall well if you or your family are entitled to get any of the money don’t take it to as the only reason you would be gettting any of this is because of President Biden and the democrats

    1. JOE BUDEN WON THE ELECTION!!! STOP THE TRUMPSTER LIES!!!!! VOTE JOE2024 LETS KEEP AMERICA SAFE WITH BUDEN

  8. It’s not about voting away from your party. It’s about what you’re voting against. I don’t agree with you here Smerc.

    1. @Tom Porsgaard Yes you understood my thought, which was a hypothetical one, not a probability based one. I was simply arguing that as you stated, CNN is a centrist news outlet that would likely call out the extreme left as well.

    2. @Tom Porsgaard
      Maybe you should look at the reality of what he said rather than interpreting it through the lens of your paranoia. All he really was saying is that sometimes the other party has a good idea, that might be opposed by your party, and sometimes your party has a BAD idea, and having reps willing to acknowledge that is a good thing. There is no point in even HAVING representatives if all they do is rubber stamp whatever their party wants.

      You probably don’t know it, but you make for a good Newt Gingrich disciple. Not in terms of policy probably, but in attitude. He once said, “The media would like us to just be the slightly conservative wing of the Democrat party to advance their liberal, socialist agenda!”

      All that this piece was about is that independent thinking, and a willingness to work with those you oppose is a good thing in a democracy.

    3. @Greg Knutson
      Well – to right wing paranoid nuts the truth and reason seem like leftist propaganda, and to left wing paranoid nuts like Tom, it looks like right wing propaganda – you BOTH need a reality check.

    4. @Tom Porsgaard
      You live under the huge delusion that you are part of a huge populist majority – when you are not. Trumpists suffer from the same problem. You and I probably agree on most policy positions, but I can face reality. The Dems went far left in the early 70s and got their asses kicked for most of 50 years – proving that far to many members of our democracy do NOT want what we do – and THAT is what it is all about! Like it or not! That may be starting to change now, and if it does – great. But until then, “progressives” should learn to be (dare I say it?) PROGRESSIVE – as in making what progress they can towards their end goals and not whining and feeling betrayed that they don’t get everything they want the way the far right does!

    5. @Greg Knutson Possibly. I couldn’t say myself, because I’ve never really understood what the term is supposed to denote. “I’m too old for this shiii…” – as someone said in a movie a few years ago (sub specie aeternitatis). Cheers 🍹🍺 The beer’s for me. 😁 Take care of yourself, we need people of your kind. You’re a great help to progressives.

  9. I’m sure it is “refreshing” for an old rich guy, maybe not so much for real people who are struggling.

  10. I couldn’t watch this whole video. This is exactly why we need to get rid of the filibuster.

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