Joe Manchin vs. Susan Collins

[UlmerFudd]

Collins

[Suburbia]

Manchin

[MT Treasurer]

I kind of admire Collins and Manchin for having conned so many people with their shtick. Says a lot that even on a forum like this, a lot of red avatars/center-left posters/liberal-leaning moderates/etc. would have preferred Collins to Manchin not that long ago and that many conservatives/Republicans/blue avatars/etc. actually considered him a more reliable ally than her in many respects.

Even if you don’t like Collins, there isn’t a single "Republican" or "conservative" issue where I’d trust Manchin to sooner side with me (not even pro-life legislation or gun rights or whatever). I’ll admit that it was pretty hilarious to see some of the meltdowns by outraged Joe Manchin voters when they learned that their good boy actually voted to impeach Trump and bashed their beloved President; gonna be even more fun when he casts the deciding vote for RBG's replacement under a Biden Presidency!

[MR DARK BRANDON]

The one with a spine.

[Flyersfan232]

I would vote for Manchin for several reasons.  One, is that he's a somewhat conservative Democrat, which I am at heart.  Two, is that he is socially conservative, and I would applaud the Democratic Party for nominating a candidate of that nature.

How this contest would turn out in the long run is interesting.  Would I be happy with my vote in 4 years?  Would the average red avatar who voted Manchin against Collins this year be happy in 4 years.  (I'm assuming that this would be a vote for President.)

Jimmy Carter was a far more liberal PRESIDENT than he was a CANDIDATE, but he was a far less liberal President than what the liberal wing of the Democratic Party wanted.  The irony of Carter was that he got far more of his legislative agenda through than what people think.  There was no gridlock during the Carter years.  What there WAS, however, was a lot of compromise legislation, and a lot of arm-twisting that got legislation through that represented compromises that pleased few. 

Carter would have been reelected had John Anderson not run the kind of 3rd Party bid he ran, and had George Bush not been the candidate.  Carter ran strongly in the South, but he narrowly lost states because he lost his religious advantage; he had waffled on abortion, and he was running against a candidate (Reagan) who had appeal with Southern White Evangelicals long before Carter was a declared candidate.  That, plus his Southern constituency was at odds with the National Democratic Party on other issues; they were less pro-union, and they were more hawkish. 

On the other hand, the bulk of people who elected Carter in 1976 were Northern liberals and labor union members, as well as blacks and Hispanics (who were nowhere near as critical a bloc in 1976 as they are now).  Carter made efforts to govern to his base, but because so much of his election in 1976 was due to winning 10 of 11 Southern states, he had to make concessions.  In the end, he pleased no one.

Such would be the lot of Joe Manchin if he were actually a Democratic nominee for President.  He'd almost certainly invite a credible 3rd party challenge, and that challenge would likely come from Bernie Sanders, himself.  Indeed, Manchin would end up being a modern John W. Davis (who also hailed from WV).  But if he were to actually win, he'd be a GREAT President if he made up his mind in advance that he'd be a one-term President.  His Presidency might well produce wiser policy initiatives than we've seen over the years, but there's no way he'd be popular over time.

Manchin is whatever best suit his career at that moment fuzzy

[Hope For A New Era]

Manchin is far better than Susan "very concerned" Collins will ever be. Protecting Obamacare was the only time she was ever useful.

[TDAS04]

The one with a spine.

So neither?

In all seriousness, I don't know which one you're referring to, but Collins has even less of a spine than Manchin. 

[Escape Pod Zero]

Today, easily Manchin. But 10 years ago I would have said Collins.