AOC rebukes Joe Manchin for his 'egregious breach of the trust of the president'
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) believes Sen. Joe Manchin's (D-W.Va.) abrupt and devastating refusal to back President Biden's flagship Build Back Better agenda to be "an egregious breach of the trust of the president," she told MSNBC's Morning Joe during a Monday morning appearance.
On Sunday, Manchin announced he will definitely not be voting for the $1.75 trillion legislation, garnering a "furious" response from the White House (Manchin's vote is needed for the bill to pass the Senate).
"I think what Sen. Manchin did yesterday represents such an egregious breach of the trust of the president," Ocasio-Cortez said Monday. "It's an outcome that we had warned about well over a month ago ... it's why we insisted on having the bipartisan infrastructure plan coupled and passed together with the Build Back Better Act."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Of course" lawmakers have "every right" to be angry at Manchin, AOC continued, but the burden now falls on Democratic leaders to get the party out of this mess.
"It's really about time that we take the kid gloves off and we start using them to govern for working families in this country."
Regarding working with the White House moving forward, the New York representative then reflected first on her and other progressives' skepticism that Biden could rally Manchin around the two-part legislation in the first place.
"With respect to the president, ... no one can really promise a Manchin vote," she said. "So we really need to figure out what the solution is."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
How climate change is affecting ChristmasThe Explainer There may be a slim chance of future white Christmases
-
The MAGA civil war takes center stage at the Turning Point USA conferenceIN THE SPOTLIGHT ‘Americafest 2025’ was a who’s who of right-wing heavyweights eager to settle scores and lay claim to the future of MAGA
-
The 8 best drama movies of 2025the week recommends Nuclear war, dictatorship and the summer of 2020 highlight the most important and memorable films of 2025
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
-
House GOP revolt forces vote on ACA subsidiesSpeed Read The new health care bill would lower some costs but not extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies
-
Hegseth rejects release of full boat strike footageSpeed Read There are calls to release video of the military killing two survivors of a Sept. 2 missile strike on an alleged drug trafficking boat
-
Trump vows naval blockade of most Venezuelan oilSpeed Read The announcement further escalates pressure on President Nicolás Maduro
-
Kushner drops Trump hotel project in SerbiaSpeed Read Affinity Partners pulled out of a deal to finance a Trump-branded development in Belgrade
