President Joe Biden and his senior advisers meet with U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Thursday, October 7, 2021, in Counselor to the President Steve Ricchetti’s West Wing office. (Official White House Photo by Cameron Smith)

Manchin Gets More Bad News as Republicans Voice Opposition to Side Deal With Democrats

Joe Manchin may be the most powerful man in Washington but it appears he was duped when he made a deal with Democrat leadership in exchange for oil and gas permitting reforms.

In exchange for Manchin’s vote for the “Inflation Reduction Act,” Democrat leadership would include reforms to the oil and gas permitting process in a stopgap funding bill.

Recently House Democrats sent a letter to House Democrat leadership expressing opposition to the deal.

Now, Republicans are joining Democrats in opposing Manchin’s deal, The Daily Wire reports.

Republicans have made the opposition bipartisan for Manchin and have taken it a step further, proposing a bill of their own.

“If you’re now looking for Republicans to support and give you more cover than you have right now, you’re not going to find it with us,” Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) told reporters last week, The Hill reported.

“Republicans historically have strongly supported permitting reform, but the permitting reform text in the CR hasn’t been released and it may favor Green New Deal projects to appease [Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raúl M.] Grijalva and the 70+ Democrats who’ve pledged to vote against it,” House Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Banks (R-IN) told his colleagues in a memo.

Even moderate Senator Susan Collins of Maine opposed the deal being tacked into a budget resolution.

The side deal by Manchin was opposed in a letter signed by more that 70 House Democrats sent to Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD).

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