Democrats join Manchin for the position of member of the energy committee

But these concerns have not been taken up by the Democratic colleagues in the Senate of Manchin, who say they are confident in the fact that He will work well with the other members of the party. Wednesday to oppose Bernard McNamee, President Donald Trump's candidate at the head of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, also encouraged his colleagues.

"He may be a member of the overall standings, but he is part of a team on climate change and environment issues," presidential candidate Senator Cory Booker said Thursday. about Manchin. "I have a lot of confidence that I can work with him to fight for a much more aggressive agenda to deal with the global crisis of global warming."

Although no news major legislation to reduce carbon emissions is promulgated With Trump in place and the GOP controlling the Senate, activists fear that Manchin will be in a position to dilute a future climate bill if the Democrats win it. in the Senate and if he became president of the energy. But his fellow senators pointed out that the energy working group would be one of the places to draft climate legislation, along with committees such as Environment and Public Works, Agriculture, Finance. and Commerce.

The Democrats also said that the caucus would not agree to shirk. the seniority of installing some one more progressive on climate issues in place of Manchin.

"Joe and I do not see the facts in the face, but he's a very important member of our caucus. He would not be the only climate leader, "said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) To the press. "On the climate, we will make decisions collectively as caucuses. No member of our caucus has a veto over climate policy, whether or not he or she is a prominent member of a committee. "

Since the highest members of the Energy Committee do not wish to prevent Manchin from holding this position, his rise to a ranking member seems anything but assured.

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) Is expected to leave her current position on the Energy Committee, although she remained publicly indecisive on Thursday. None of the other Senators have more seniority than Manchin – The Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Or Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) – have expressed no interest in leaving their position as a line manager. budget and agriculture, respectively, paving the way for the West Virginia Democrats to position themselves in the energy field.

Cantwell expresses confidence in Manchin's ability to represent the expanded Democratic caucus on climate and energy issues, if any.

"J I think Joe understands and understands that we have to meet a variety of energy needs, "she told reporters. "I would look forward to working with him, no matter what his abilities."

For his part, Manchin said he has felt no backtracking since his eventual promotion and dismissed it. idea that his vote on McNamee was supposed to be an olive branch. environmentalists who opposed his support for the GOP candidate in a committee vote last week. Because McNamee "outright denies the impact humans have on our climate, I can no longer support his candidacy. "Climate change is real, humans have had a significant impact, and we have the responsibility and the ability to tackle it urgently," Manchin said Wednesday in a statement explaining his decision.

"I was pretty consistent about the I felt about the climate," he told reporters Thursday.

Manchin also said he expected the caucus continues to follow the rules of seniority in the final selection of the best Democrat on the Energy Committee

"There are rules to which we must comply", he said, "I have always respected them."

This is not to say that the likely promotion of Manchin was universally welcomed in the caucus.A Democratic senator, who requested the anonymity to talk about internal discussions, pointed out that the caucus had already held votes on the disputed presidencies, notably to allow Senator Joe Lieberman to retain his chairmanship of the Homeland Security Committee in 2008.

The senator said Manchin would probably win While a vote in the caucus was held today out of respect for his seniority, legislators were looking for ways to dispel fears about his promotion, as with his half-hearted McNamee.

"At this point, the guy deserves a chance to prove himself," said the senator. "It has a very real possibility of dispelling enough concern to move forward."

Whether it's what he wanted or not, Manchin's action against McNamee was hailed by other Democrats as an olive branch.

"If he gets it, he could have the potential to become that role," said Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) To the press. "You know you're a senator from a coal-loving state and want to lobby, but this committee is a source of energy. You have to have a broader vision. "

The lack of public criticism from Democratic Democrats in Manchin could possibly arouse the envy of liberal activists who pushed minority leader Chuck Schumer to block the movement of way or from another.

"Sen. Joe Manchin's change of heart regarding Bernard McNamee does not erase a career spent defending the fossil fuel industry, "said Lukas Ross, Senior Policy Analyst at Friends of the Earth, in a statement. "While the leader of the Senate minority, Chuck Schumer, wonders who should lead the committee at the center of the climate debate, he faces a tough decision that will directly reflect how seriously he takes the threat of climate change "

The Republicans, for their part. , can barely contain their enthusiasm over the possibility that Manchin will become the partner of Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) at the top of the Energy Committee.

"I think it's great," Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) told POLITICO. "Joe Manchin has very consistent points of view compared to those I share."