Manchin: Biden ‘Hypocritical’ on Debt Limit, We’ve Always Had Talks in Divided Government

While speaking to CNN on Tuesday, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) stated that President Joe Biden’s refusal to negotiate over spending cuts in exchange for raising the debt ceiling is “not rational, it’s not reasonable, and it’s not practical.” And that the White House’s refusal to negotiate spending cuts around raising the debt ceiling is “hypocritical” when there have been negotiations on raising the debt ceiling any time that there is divided government and one party doesn’t control the House, the Senate, and the White House.

Manchin said, “It’s just — it’s not rational, it’s not reasonable, and it’s not practical. And it’s something that — it’s hypocritical to say that we’re not going to do it now, when we’ve done it every time that there has been a split in the party. The only time that I know there hasn’t been a big discussion is when one party, whether it be Republicans, have the [White House], the House, and the Senate or the Democrats have all three.”

In another part of the interview, CNN Chief Congressional Correspondent Manu Raju said, “they’re saying no, no cuts, nothing tied to it.”

Manchin responded, “That’s not — I think that’s not reasonable.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett