MISERABLY IN A REELECTION BATTLE. SPEAKING OF PEOPLE WHO DON'T LIKE THEIR OLD PARTY ANYMORE, WEST VIRGINIA SENATOR JOE MANCHIN MADE A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT TODAY. HE OFFICIALLY LEFT THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, REGISTERING AS AN INDEPENDENT. NOW, AS A DEMOCRAT, HE FREQUENTLY BUCKED PARTY POLITICS. HE WAS ONE OF TWO SENATORS IN THE CAUCUS RESPONSIBLE FOR KILLING PRESIDENT BIDEN'S SO-CALLED BUILD BACK BETTER AGENDA IN THE FIRST YEAR OF HIS PRESIDENCY. THE OTHER WAS KYRSTEN SINEMA, WHO ALREADY SWITCHED TO BEING AN INDEPENDENT BACK IN 2022. BOTH OF THEM HAVE DECIDED NOT TO RUN FOR REELECTION TODAY. MANCHIN CONDEMNED BOTH DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS FOR STRAYING SO FAR FROM THE POLITICAL CENTER. >> MY REASON FOR THAT I CAN SPEAK TO BOTH SIDES WITHOUT HAVING A BRAND. IF YOU WILL. THE BRANDS HAVE GOTTEN SO BAD. IF YOU HAVE A D BY YOUR NAME, A DEMOCRAT, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO HATE REPUBLICANS. IF YOU HAVE AN R BY YOUR NAME, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO HATE DEMOCRATS. I DON'T HATE EITHER ONE, AND THEY'RE NOT OUR ENEMIES. EACH ONE ARE NOT THE ENEMY. WE NEED TO COME TOGETHER AS A COUNTRY, MAKING SURE THAT BOTH PARTIES HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO BRING THE BEST IDEAS TO FIX THE PROBLEMS THAT WE ALL FACE. WE CAN DO THAT, BUT ONLY AS ONE COUNTRY. >> SO WHEN THE NEWS BROKE TODAY, I KNEW WHO I HAD TO CALL OUR RESIDENT WEST VIRGINIA EXPERT AND THE EDITOR OF ORDINARY TIMES, ANDREW DONALDSON. UP LATE WITH ME TONIGHT. HERE LIVE ON THE FINAL 5. HELLO, SIR. GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN. GOOD TO SEE YOU, JIM. BEEN TOO LONG, MY FRIEND, I KNOW, AND, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY TO YOU. BECAUSE I BELIEVE WE ARE, WHAT, 8 OR 9 DAYS APART FROM EACH OTHER, LET'S TALK ABOUT THAT. YOU JUST HEARD JOE MANCHIN SPEAK HERE. I'VE ALWAYS SAID THAT JOE MANCHIN, HE DID WHAT HE WAS ELECTED TO DO. WEST VIRGINIA IS FAR FROM A LIBERAL LIBERAL WONDERLAND. I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT HE WAS REPRESENTING THE INTERESTS OF PEOPLE ON BOTH SIDES OF THE AISLE. BUT IS THAT JUST HIGH PLATITUDES FOR HIM, BASICALLY, THE GROUND SHIFTED OUT UNDERNEATH HIS FEET WITH HIM CHANGING TO AN INDEPENDENT TODAY. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME IN 101 YEARS. STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA DOES NOT HAVE A DEMOCRAT IN WASHINGTON DC REPRESENTING THEM. THAT'S A LONG, LONG RUN. I EVEN PUBLISHED A PIECE A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO CALLING HIM THE LAST OF THE BLUE DOG. BLUE DOG DEMOCRATS. THOSE SOCIALLY CONSERVATIVE DEMOCRATS WE USED TO CALL THEIR EXTINCT. I WAS WAY MORE RIGHT THAN I THOUGHT HE WAS NOT ONLY THE LAST ONE, HE TURNED THE LIGHT OFF ON HIS WAY OUT THE DOOR AND BECAME AN INDEPENDENT. SO I WAS WRONG ABOUT THAT. I NEVER THOUGHT HE'D DO IT, BUT WHEN YOU HAVE A TRUMP 40 PLUS POINT STATE, THESE SORT OF THINGS HAPPEN. BUT IT'S A LOT OF OTHER THINGS TO THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. DIDN'T REALLY WANT HIM EITHER. HE'S BEEN VERY FRUSTRATED IN CONGRESS. IT MAKES SENSE ON THE OUTSIDE, BUT IT'S STILL SHOCKING THIS THIS WOULD BE LIKE A KENNEDY GOING INDEPENDENT AND NOT JUST A RFK JR. WACKADOO VERSION. ONE OF THE INBRED. THIS IS, YOU KNOW, A JAMES MANCHIN WAS HIS UNCLE, A LEGENDARY FIGURE. THIS IS KIND OF SURPRISING IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT, BUT MAYBE REALLY SHOULDN'T HAVE IF WE PAID BETTER ATTENTION. SO I WAS WRONG, ONE THING THAT CAME OUT IN THE YEARS PAST WHEN PEOPLE WERE UNHAPPY WITH WITH MANCHIN, AS YOU MENTIONED, DEMOCRATS WERE NOT HAPPY WITH HIM SINKING THE BIDEN AGENDA IN THAT FIRST YEAR. THEY SAID, WELL, JOE MANCHIN, HE MIGHT AS WELL JUST BE A REPUBLICAN. AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE HEARD FROM THE LIKES OF MITCH MCCONNELL, WHO HAD SAID HE WOULD OPEN HIM. HE WOULD WELCOME HIM WITH OPEN ARMS. LET'S TAKE A LISTEN. >> I'VE SUGGESTED A GOOD SOLUTION TO HIS PROBLEM WOULD BE TO COME ACROSS THE AISLE AND JOIN US, OR HE'D BE A TREATED WITH RESPECT. >> WE KNOW THAT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN AT THIS POINT, BUT IT DOES LOOK LIKE THE NEXT PERSON TO FILL THAT SEAT IS GOING TO BE YOUR GOVERNOR. JIM JUSTICE, WHO IS A WHO WAS A DEMOCRAT TURNED A REPUBLICAN. IT'S KIND OF FUNNY TO SEE ALL THE SHIFTING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN SO MANY DIFFERENT WEST VIRGINIA POLITICIANS. >> YEAH. AND HE RAN AS A DEMOCRAT FOR GOVERNOR OF WEST VIRGINIA BECAUSE HIS BUDDY JOE MANCHIN TALKED HIM INTO IT. SO THAT GOES BACK A LONG WAYS. THEY'RE FRENEMIES. THEY'LL GO BACK TO BEING BUDDIES WHEN THIS IS ALL DONE. YEAH. BUT YEAH, IT'S INTERESTING HOW THESE SORT OF THINGS HAVE ALL WORKED OUT, BUT IT JUST GOES SHIFTING SANDS IN THE LAST 25 YEARS, WEST VIRGINIA HAS GONE FROM COMPLETELY DOMINATED BY THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY TO COMPLETELY DOMINATED BY THE REPUBLICAN PARTY. IT'S REALLY A SHOCKING SWING. AND NOW YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE JIM JUSTICE, WHICH IS ONE OF THE REASONS THE REPUBLICANS ARE IN GOOD SHAPE TO FLIP THE SENATE. JIM, JUSTICE IS GOING TO BE THE REPUBLICAN AFTER A LONG RUN OF GOVERNOR. WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS. GOVERNOR. AND BY THE WAY, THAT VIDEO CLIP YOU SHOWED, THAT WAS JOE MANCHIN CHANGING HIS REGISTRATION AT THE CAPITOL IN CHARLESTON. THAT WAS THE CHARLESTON, CAPITOL BUILDING FOR THE STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA BEHIND HIM. THAT LEADS A LOT OF PEOPLE TO WONDER WHAT HE'S ACTUALLY UP TO WITH THIS MOVE. IS HE JUST MAKING A STATEMENT ON HIS WAY OUT? THE DOOR, OR IS HE UP TO SOMETHING? >> YEAH, THERE'S A LOT OF SPECULATION THAT MAYBE HE MIGHT JUMP INTO THE RACE FOR GOVERNOR THERE BECAUSE AND RUN AS AN INDEPENDENT, WHICH HE CAN DO AT THIS POINT. >> HE CAN. AND THE REASON THIS IS A BIG DEAL, BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO CHANGE YOUR PARTY AFFILIATION BY 1ST JUNE. THAT WOULD BE TOMORROW IN ORDER TO RUN. BUT IT WOULD BE REALLY WEIRD FOR HIM BECAUSE I DON'T THINK HE'S GOING TO RUN FOR THE SENATE SEAT. HE'S ALREADY ENDORSED, THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR THAT. IF HE JUMPS IN THE GOVERNOR'S RACE, YOU COULD KIND OF SEE WHERE YOU COULD TALK YOURSELF INTO THAT, BECAUSE HE'S NOT GOING TO GET 60% IN WEST VIRGINIA, BUT A THREE WAY RACE FOR GOVERNOR. AND HE REALLY DOES NOT LIKE PATRICK MORRISEY, THE AG, WHO'S THE REPUBLICAN NOMINEE. REMEMBER, THEY WENT AT IT AT THE SENATE PRETTY HARD AND HEAVY, BUT HE WOULD BE IN A REALLY DIFFICULT POSITION BECAUSE JUST ON THE LONG, LONG AGO OF WEDNESDAY, WHICH SEEMS LIKE AN ETERNITY IN POLITICAL TERMS, HE WAS BASICALLY ENDORSING STEVE WILLIAMS, THE HUNTINGTON MAYOR, WHO'S GOING TO BE THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE. IT WOULD BE VERY AWKWARD FOR HIM TO DO THAT. REMEMBER, ALSO, THEN THE PLAY HERE, HE'S BEEN TALKING OF THIS, POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE THAT HIS DAUGHTER'S RUNNING NOW AND HIS EFFORT TO THAT THIS COULD BE, YOU KNOW, OUR 5 STAGES OF MANSION THAT HE DOES WITH LEGISLATION WHERE HE SAYS SOMETHING GETS OUTRAGED, DOUBLES DOWN ON IT, AND THEN YOU DO THE NEGOTIATION. SO I'M WONDERING IF BOTH PARTIES WRITE A NICE BIG CHECK. THEY MAY BE ABLE TO GET JOE TO RETIRE FOR GOOD THIS TIME. ANDREW DONALDSON JOINING US LIVE HERE ON
