Joe Manchin Tag

As reported by the Beckley, West Virginia Register-Herald, Joe Manchin said he would vote to repeal Obamacare. That quote (below) has received a lot of attention, but in context it's not at all clear that Manchin was doing anything other than playing both sides of the fence because he also said he supports fixing Obamacare (emphasis added):

Although Sen. Joe Manchin had planned to discuss the Charleston-area chemical spill and his recent piece of legislation the Chemical Safety and Drinking Water Protection Act of 2014, he instead turned his focus on a hodgepodge of topics, including minimum wage, balancing the nation’s budget and health-care issues.... He asked for all the listeners to let him and other lawmakers know their thoughts on the variety of topics, including the Affordable Care Act. “We spend more on health care than any state, but we rank 43rd on wellness and longevity.” Both parties agree on many aspects of the ACA, such as pre-existing conditions not being excluded from coverage and no lifetime caps, but there are still many kinks that need to be fixed, Manchin said. “I will vote tomorrow to repeal (the ACA), but I want to fix the problems in it.” He said the ACA is essentially a product and the government needs to find a way to “sell it” and make their customers want to buy it.

As Ed Morrissey points out, there isn't even a Senate bill coming to vote "tomorrow" (i.e., today), so it's not clear about what Manchin is talking. Manchin has warned before about a "complete meltdown" of Obamacare:

The West Virginia Democratic senator said Sunday that the federal health-care law could be headed for a "complete meltdown" if costs rise too fast and individuals are not happy with their coverage.

From this vague and unclear statement, it appears Manchin is doing nothing more than criticizing Obamacare in order to save it. Here's video from August 2013 in which Manchin argues to save Obamacare through changes: