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Image:  The Ohio River near Wheeling, West Virginia   Salena Zito, @SalenaZito,@DCExaminer @RealClearPolitics; New York Post, CNN; Middle of Somewhere column; in re: In Charleston, WV, Salina spoke with Joe Manchin.     His is the vote that the Democrats must hold.  He calls himself “the middle of the middle.” He said that having a 50/50 split Senate is as rare as Halley’s Comet; you have to be very mindful of rules and demeanor, keep these intact. He takes these seriously, so is a wild card for both parties. Senate Robert Byrd: The Byrd Rule ensures that Senators need to discuss and negotiate among themselves.   These days, not much difference between Dem and Republican in WV, although the Democrats have a drop of the New Deal in them, probably from their parents.     Remove the filibuster?  Manchin is for whatever the Democrats favor in this—tack on the perks? He’ll vote to maintain the filibuster. Byrd Rule and the minimum wage: Manchin thinks this should be left to individual states, not in the Covid legislation. Stimulus: Manchin is unhappy with all the tack-ons [pork].  He’s chair of the Senate Energy Committee, which is powerful. He does not believe in eliminating any energy resource, certainly including coal and gas. He favors “all of the above.”  Unions: when you walk out of high school and finish your trade training, you immediately make $70,000 a year, which is enormous in WW. Solar jobs: $38,000/year.   Imagine telling a Washington pol: “Here, you’ll just make half as much henceforth.” https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/west-virginias-joe-manchin-will-keep-senates-byrd-rule-flying