FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 19, 2021

CONTACT: press@populardemocracy.org

NEW YORK - In response to Sen. Manchin (D-WV) saying today that he won’t support the Build Back Better bill, Ana María Archila, Co-Executive Director of the Center for Popular Democracy, issued the following statement:

“We are devastated that Sen. Manchin has chosen to work with Republicans to kill a lifesaving bill that would provide working families support they desperately need, especially during a pandemic. CPD Action has worked tirelessly for months to pass BBB because we believe it’s our best chance to address the critical, interconnected challenges facing our communities: healthcare, housing, climate change, paid leave, economic justice and immigration. 

“And with a single Fox News appearance, that lifeline may be gone — for tens of millions across America, and for the one in 5 children in West Virginia who live in poverty, the 170,000 West Virginia children who benefit from the expanded Child Tax Credit, and the 26% of adults in his state who have lost their natural teeth because of lack of dental coverage. 

“Sen. Manchin could have stood with his Democratic colleagues to endorse vision, hearing and dental coverage for our seniors through expanded Medicaid. He could have worked to bring 17,000 new jobs to West Virginia each year, including employment in a growing, sustainable 21st century energy industry. Instead, he’s chosen to side with his billionaire friends and those in the coal industry.

“We work for ‘popular democracy’ — the idea that all voices in a thriving democracy should be heard — so we find it especially galling that one Senator from a small state can single-handedly undermine the agenda that millions of voters, especially from our Black, brown, low-income and immigrant communities, turned out to support in 2020. 

“This outcome is undemocratic and unacceptable. Our people deserve elected officials who put their interests first, and our communities deserve bold, transformational policies that replace broken systems with something better.

“We will continue to fight for safe, secure and affordable housing, expanded healthcare access, a pathway to citizenship and a plan to address climate change that is ambitious enough to match this moment of existential crisis. We will continue to fight to Build Back Better.”

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ABOUT THE CENTER FOR POPULAR DEMOCRACY

The Center for Popular Democracy is a national network of more than 50 community organizations dedicated to achieving racial and economic justice through local grassroots organizing. CPD trains and supports leadership, staff, and members to grow base-building organizations to scale and leverage that strength to win cutting-edge policy victories at the federal, state and local level.