More media attacks on Manchin as he's called 'villain,' questioned for putting West Virginia first

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Media top headlines June 9

The New York Times getting panned for its Mara Gay defense, a case of mistaken identity at Vice President Harris’ press conference, and a White House press corps flight being delayed by cicadas round out today’s top media headlines

Media attacks on Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., continued this week as contributors for MSNBC and the Washington Post questioned his motives for opposing the Democrat-led For the People Act.

Manchin came out against the legislation, which would be a massive federal overhaul of U.S. election laws, because it was too partisan.

"It's the wrong piece of legislation to bring our country together and unite our country," he said on "Fox News Sunday."

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MSNBC's Hayes Brown became one of the latest pundits to question Manchin's decision, seemingly wondering why he chose to legislate with West Virginians in mind.

"In protecting his constituents' interests as he defines them, Sen. Manchin leaves them vulnerable to the machinations that Republicans have set in motion across the country," Brown wrote.

Brown acknowledged that Manchin does "believe" in the Senate, but shared his concern he "operates with an eye firmly on West Virginia and its people, not the country as a whole. It's an increasingly antiquated view that he brandishes in defense of an increasingly antiquated chamber."

Brown, citing polling he claimed showed popular support in the state for the legislation, fretted Manchin could "be the Union's ruin."

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The Washington Post's Eugene Robinson didn't hold back his feelings in a piece headlined, "Manchin is setting himself up to be the villain in this fairytale." Robinson wrote Manchin's calls for bipartisanship prove he lives in a "fantasy" world.

"There’s no way to spin this as anything other than awful," Robinson fretted.

Author David A. Jones was more blunt in a new piece for The Grio entitled, "Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema are a threat to Black Americans." Sinema, a Democrat from Arizona, has joined Manchin in opposing an end to the filibuster, which requires 60 votes to end debate on a bill and force a vote.

In a Baltimore Sun commentary published Tuesday, editorial writer Peter Jensen argued that "Sen. Joe Manchin isn't a statesman; He's a fool."

These new attacks on Manchin from the media come on the heels of Atlantic contributor Jemele Hill tweeting Manchin was a "cowardly, power-hungry White dude" and "clown."

"Democracy killer" and "worse than a Republican" is how others have described him.

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Manchin operates a unique space in the U.S. Senate as a Democrat representing a deep-red state, which went for Donald Trump easily in 2016 and 2020.