(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Former Sen. Joe Manchin said Democrats, some paid by left-wing groups, lobbed death threats against him after he told former President Joe Biden he would oppose the Build Back Better bill.
Manchin appeared on the All-In Podcast, where he spoke about the origins of the death threats and his decision to block the controversial Build Back Better Act over concerns about inflation and reckless spending.
“I told him, I said, ‘Mr. President, I’m sorry, man. I can’t get there.’ And they tried for eight months, beat up on me. I mean, I had to have security,” Manchin said of the mounting pressure from his own party.
🚨 WOW! Fmr. Sen. Joe Manchin says Biden started a pressure campaign against him w/ death threats & paid protestors for not supporting the ‘Build Back Better’ spending bill
“They tried for eight months to beat up me. I mean, I had to have security.” pic.twitter.com/XY2jvhNW5j
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) October 24, 2025
Manchin wrote about the death threats in his book, Dead Center: In Defense of Common Sense. He said protesters flooded his D.C. houseboat with signs and violent threats.
“It’s pretty intense,” Manchin said. “But I can tell you one thing. When every day the Capitol police calls you and says, ‘Your death threats are serious enough right now. … We’ll meet you down at where you live and we’ll bring you to work and we’ll take you back home, you know, things are pretty serious.”
The former senator said he never wanted to know the full extent of the threats but knew “they were serious.” At one point, police told him the left-wing protesters had located his children’s addresses and his grandchildren’s schools.
“I’m thinking, ‘Oh my god, this is crazy,’” Manchin said.
The former senator said he believed some of the protests were paid. He recounted that at one point, a neighbor asked some of the protesters how he could join.
“They say, ‘Oh, just sign up and get $15 an hour.’ I couldn’t believe it.”
Manchin left the Senate in 2025 after serving 15 years. During President Biden’s administration, he was often the lone voice of reason, repeatedly rejecting left-wing policies.
