Manchin says he will vote against Biden’s EPA nominees

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said Wednesday he will oppose all of President Biden’s nominees for positions at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over energy policy disagreements. 

“I fear that this Administration’s commitment to their extreme ideology overshadows their responsibility to ensure long-lasting energy and economic security and I will oppose all EPA nominees until they halt their government overreach,” Manchin said in a written statement.

He specifically cited proposed regulations for power plants that are expected soon from the EPA. 

“This Administration is determined to advance its radical climate agenda and has made it clear they are hellbent on doing everything in their power to regulate coal and gas-fueled power plants out of existence, no matter the cost to energy security and reliability,” he said. 

“If the reports are true, the pending EPA proposal would impact nearly all fossil-fueled power plants in the United States, which generate about 60 percent of our electricity, without an adequate plan to replace the lost baseload generation. This piles on top of a broader regulatory agenda being rolled out designed to kill the fossil industry by a thousand cuts,” he added. 

Manchin’s dissension creates a difficult pathway for Biden’s EPA nominees. If no Republicans cross the aisle, they will need the support of every Democrat, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) who has been absent but returned to the Capitol this week. 

It comes as Manchin, who has not yet announced whether he will seek reelection, could face a tough race in ruby-red West Virginia if he runs.

It also follows weeks of frustration from the Senate over the Biden administration’s broader energy and environment policies, including how they are handling the Inflation Reduction Act’s electric vehicle tax credits. 

The regulations Manchin specifically referenced are draft climate regulations for power plants, which the EPA is expected to put forward soon. The Supreme Court ruled last year the agency can’t mandate a shift to more climate-friendly power sources, but the agency has other tools at its disposal, including requiring emissions cuts based on what is able to be done through technology at a power plant site.

The rules are expected to be a key component of the Biden administration’s climate agenda, but they can be controversial in states like West Virginia, where coal and gas are part of the local economy. 

Manchin’s critics, meanwhile, often point to the senator’s financial ties to coal when he comes out against the administration’s climate policies. 

The Hill has reached out to the White House and EPA for comment on Manchin’s statement. 

Updated at 11:18 a.m.