Dem
47
GOP
53
Yesterday, Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV) reiterated that he is backing off his previous commitment not to vote for a judicial nominee if that nominee cannot attract at least one Republican vote. He explained that "we're in different times right now" and "my Republican friends are under the microscope." Shortly thereafter, as reader R.V. in Pittsburgh, PA, brings to our attention, the Senator celebrated his personal declaration of independence by voting against a nominee that had unanimous support from Democrats.
The nominee that Manchin opposed is Embry Kidd, who is nominated to a circuit court seat on the Eleventh Circuit. Kidd has a bachelor's degree from Emory and a J.D. from Yale Law School. He clerked for a federal judge, worked in private practice for several years, served as an assistant U.S. Attorney for several more years, and has been a magistrate judge for the Middle District of Florida for the last 5 years. He is also Black. Manchin did not explain his vote, so we are left to guess which part of this résumé the elderly white guy from West Virginia found disagreeable.
Kidd will probably still get confirmed when the final vote is held, because he's got the support of Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), and because several Republicans are not in Washington right now, or are in Washington but are not showing up for work (ahem, J.D. Vance and Marco Rubio). What this story shows is that Manchin is going to remain inscrutable until the day he leaves the Senate. He will probably vote for some judicial nominees and against others, and nobody but Manchin will know why he voted the way he did. (Z)