Senator Joe says the quiet part out loud

The headline from yesterday’s Business Insider:

Joe Manchin tells CEOs it's 'foolish' for them to give money to political candidates while 'asking nothing in return'

From the article’s bullet point summary:

• Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin addressed a room full of top CEOs on Thursday morning.
• He gave them advice on engaging with a "dysfunctional" political system: "Quit writing checks to everybody."
• He said that by "asking nothing in return" for political donations, CEOs were "supporting bad behavior."

According to the article, Manchin suggested that donors should “make an investment” in a politician:

"Why don't you do this: tell a politician when they come to you, say, 'listen, I'm sorry, I don't give checks. I don't give a donation or a contribution to any politician, but I'm willing to make an investment," he said. "What should I expect from you? What are you going to do? What have you done in your political life, and what will you do if this is your first time? Tell me so I can make a decision on whether I want to invest in you, because I can expect something in return."

Perhaps realizing that this would probably not play well, a Manchin aide was quick to clarify:

"It is absurd to suggest Senator Manchin was advocating for a quid pro quo," she said in a statement to Insider. "He has long advocated for increased transparency in campaign finances and has repeatedly made the point that both voters and donors should hold elected officials accountable when they simply obstruct progress instead of looking for lasting, bipartisan solutions that put our country ahead of partisan politics.”

Yeah, right. I think Senator Manchin knows about “investments” in politicians -- here are some of them from the oil and gas industry (from Open Secrets):

Manchin wants changes in Medicare and Social Security

Echoing Republicans days before the midterms, Sen. Joe Manchin says that Congress must make changes to Social Security and Medicare to address America's "crippling debt."

The election will determine whether Manchin remains the deciding vote in the Senate. pic.twitter.com/ONaDfY4x9Y

— More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) November 4, 2022

And he represents West Virginia?

The recent AP Manchin story that the Intelligencer hasn't published

From the Associated Press on Wednesday:

West Virginia’s Mooney runs for Congress but aims at Manchin

It begins:

West Virginia Republican U.S. Rep. Alex Mooney is a Trump-backed Christian conservative who is anti-abortion, pro-coal and thinks marriage should be “between a man and a woman.” Democrat Barry Wendell, his opponent in next week’s election, is an openly gay Jewish man who supports abortion rights and replacing fossil fuels with clean energy.

You’d think the candidates — who couldn’t be more different — would have a lot to talk about. But Mooney hasn’t shown much interest in debating or even engaging with Wendell. The sitting congressman is more interested in talking about the last Democrat holding statewide office in West Virginia, Sen. Joe Manchin.

The story has gotten a great deal of coverage in WV's media. It's interesting that Ogden has ignored it.