West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin told Fox Business on Wednesday he has not ruled out a 2024 Democratic presidential primary run.
The moderate former governor, who has riled both the left and the right in bucking their wishes at times, told "Kudlow" he wants to do "everything possible" to see the United States move in a "moderate, centrist direction."
That included praising the opposing party's leader in Congress, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., for successfully negotiating a debt ceiling deal that brought together lawmakers from both sides of the aisle.
"What Kevin did, and basically got us to debt ceiling, he started it, brought it over – the president knew he had to sit down and negotiate. We got something done and we did it in a bipartisan way," Manchin said.
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Kudlow said he too is a former Democrat, who later served as a top economic adviser in ex-President Donald Trump's Republican administration.
The host asked if Manchin might "throw [his] hat into the ring as an … old-line, moderate, pro-growth, well-balanced Democrat."
"There's not many of us left," Manchin quipped back.
"Only in America does the next election start the day after the election," he said, adding that there are so many other priorities on his plate before he entertains any decision.
Manchin said he wants to continue to champion Corridor H – essentially a transformational upgrade of previously windy and mountainous U.S. Route 48 into an interstate-grade freeway to better from I-79 in Buckhannon through Tucker County to I-81 in Virginia.
The project, dedicated to its other longtime supporter, the late Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.V., has been mostly completed from Tucker County eastward.
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Manchin also said he wants to prioritize West Virginia's "Hydrogen Hub" coalition, which seeks to position the historically coal-rich state as a national hub for clean Hydrogen power production.
Later, Kudlow pressed further on Manchin's potential political future – as he faces a likely contentious re-election bid against either Gov. Jim Justice or Rep. Alex X. Mooney, R-W.V. in a state won by Donald Trump by about 30 points.
"I'm very much concerned with the direction of our country, and I will make a decision later on [as to] where i can help the country the best I possibly can; and my state," he said. "I'm looking for that moderate middle."
To those who ask which party he should belong to, Manchin said he belongs to "one team; the American team -- I'm fiscally responsibly and socially compassionate, [and] I think most Americans feel the same way."
He affirmed Kudlow's question about Biden going too far left, while the host asked again, "[t]he presidential door is open – you're going to leave it open for the moment?"
"I haven't closed anything Larry, and I've kept everything open," Manchin replied. "I'm just looking at everything possible to move in a moderate, centrist [direction] – to make sure we're making our decisions not from the extremes: extreme left and extreme right."
Biden already faces two primary competitors, author Marianne Williamson and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. – the latter of whom has garnered 20% intraparty support in recent polls.
