• Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
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      2 years ago

      According to the article, the majority of people who voted third party in 2016 voted for Biden in 2020. If they’re lured away by a Manchin/Huntsman ticket, that could affect Biden’s chances.

      • crusa187@lemmy.ml
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        2 years ago

        Lured away by the guy who consistently stepped up to be the detractor to Biden delivering on all the meaningful campaign promises? While I think this was an intentional partnership between the two, I don’t see Manchin luring away any 3rd party voters at all.

        • dudinax@programming.dev
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          2 years ago

          I think Manchin would lure independents who don’t like Trump but would vote for Trump over Biden. That’s probably a small group, but he still might steal more from Trump than Biden.

          • StarServal@kbin.social
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            2 years ago

            Those aren’t independents, those are conservatives in denial. Biden is the Democratic Party incarnate, for all its faults and foibles. If they’d rather vote for a traitorous, unashamed self-serving conman over what amounts to the avatar of status quo, they were never going to vote for any Democrat regardless of their position. That makes it entirely clear which side they’re on, even if they claim not to be on one.

            Many of the independents that voted for Biden out of necessity were upset that he wasn’t further left, not that he wasn’t further right. That, or they were people who traditions voted R but were so disgusted with Trump that they voted against him out of necessity.

            Edit: Corrected a thing.

            • Drusas@kbin.social
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              2 years ago

              As a lifelong independent, I really can’t stand how the left has begun calling all independents conservatives in denial these last couple years. I’m practically a socialist. I just think Democrats largely suck, too, so I’ll vote for them, but I’m not going to pretend to be one of them.

              • StarServal@kbin.social
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                2 years ago

                I typed out probably a dozen different replies of all kinds to you, but ultimately decided against posting any of them because on reflection they could all be seen as negative.
                So rather than that, I’ll say you raise a valid point and I apologize for my previous statement. I think you and I could probably see eye to eye on a lot of subjects.

                • Drusas@kbin.social
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                  2 years ago

                  I suspect we would. I’m fortunate that I don’t have to register with a party to vote in their primaries, so I can happily remain registered as independent unless/until a better party comes along and gains traction.

  • StarServal@kbin.social
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    2 years ago

    Manchin will never get the DNC nomination if he runs as D, he’ll never get enough votes if he runs as a third party, and he’ll never get the Trump votes if he runs as R. There’s no way Manchin can become president in this current political landscape. He would need politics to return to the 80s to have a chance at any kind of success; when the parties weren’t so inflamed and divided.

      • Seasoned_Greetings@lemmy.world
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        2 years ago

        That seems like exactly what that guy would do. The only problem with that is you have to actually be an attractive candidate to be a spoiler. If he runs, he’s not really taking any votes from Biden because nobody who votes Biden is going to consider a party-line traitor like Manchin. If anything he’ll be spoiling the republican candidates who are looking for a less batshit alternative. But then again, that’s not how primaries work.

        • hark@lemmy.world
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          2 years ago

          He’s probably doing it to collect a paycheck from the people paying him to be a spoiler.

        • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
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          2 years ago

          You don’t get to a position like Manchin’s without having a massive ego. He already enjoys being a spoiler in the senate. It’s his thing now. He’s the Democrats’ Rand Paul. So extending that to a presidential race makes sense from his perspective.

        • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.worldBanned from community
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          2 years ago

          The only problem with that is you have to actually be an attractive candidate to be a spoiler. If he runs, he’s not really taking any votes from Biden because nobody who votes Biden is going to consider a party-line traitor like Manchin.

          I’m not so sure. Centrists have been defending Manchin ever since he killed BBB for them. I also recall 2008, when centrist Clinton supporters formed a PAC to oppose Obama and support McCain after he won the nomination.

          Meanwhile, Biden has been trying to get student loan forgiveness, something centrists oppose and progressives support, and worst of all made it clear with his second forgiveness plan that he wasn’t going to just announce that he tried and never try again.

          I’m sure there are some centrists who would crawl over broken glass for a chance to drink the bilge water from Manchin’s houseboat. 2008 showed that centrists will not only jump ship, they’ll organize. Progressives have never formed a PAC to support a Republican like centrists did.

  • Jordan Lund@lemmy.one
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    2 years ago

    As a 3rd party? LOL, please do! Let him find out being a 1%'er also applies to political polling.

  • Irv@midwest.social
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    2 years ago

    Being skeptical of Democrats is not a political agenda, but that’s what these centrists run on. It’s pathetic and achieves nothing

  • geekzapoppin@lemmy.world
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    2 years ago

    As a West Virginian, I’m sorry. Not only is Manchin going to run for president, it’s looking like our homunculus of a governor will take his spot in the Senate. I both love my state and hate my state. It’s harder and harder to continue to live here as a Democrat.