Dem senator: ‘I wanted to be more involved’ in GOP tax plan

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) said on Sunday that he wishes he could have been more involved in the Republican-backed tax legislation that appears set to pass through both houses of Congress this week. 

“I wanted to be more involved,” Manchin told NBC’s Chuck Todd on “Meet the Press.” 

“And the president told me, he said, ‘Joe, this is not going to be a tax cut for the rich like me.’ And I said, ‘Mr. President, that’s good.’ He said it’s going to be for the average working person, who’s got left behind,” Manchin said. 

{mosads}”Well, I really believe that the president wanted to work in a bipartisan way,” he continued. 

Manchin went on to say that he gave the White House suggestions that would have made the legislation more palatable for Democrats. 

“I gave them a whole litany of things that I thought 10 or more Democrats would vote for,” he said. 

“Once [Senate Majority Leader] Mitch McConnell [R-Ky.] decided that 51 votes was all he was needed, and they were all going to be Republicans and make it political, that’s exactly what happened.”

The senator’s comments come as Republicans look to pass the tax bill through both houses of Congress this week, and get the legislation to President Trump’s desk by Christmas. 

The legislation, if passed, would mark Trump’s first major legislative victory. 

Democrats have been highly critical of the bill, saying it was shoved through Congress without Democratic input. 

Manchin, who is up for reelection in 2018, finds himself walking a political tightrope. 

He is seen as one of the more conservative Democrats in the Senate, however, he comes from a predominately conservative state where Trump has enjoyed widespread popularity.