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A growing number of House Democrats is warning of a government shutdown in their opposition to Sen. Joe Manchin IIIs energy plan.

Senate leaders plan to attach the West Virginia Democrats yet-to-be-released legislation to a must-pass stopgap spending measure by the end of the month to prevent the federal government from shuttering, a move that dozens of far-left members and climate hawks in the House are threatening to bat down.

Their numbers have grown in recent days from 72 to 77, underscoring the desire among Democrats to betray Mr. Manchin.

Leaders promised him that Congress would pass a bill that would streamline energy projects of all forms in exchange for his support of the partys tax and climate spending law.

The opposition is loud and only getting louder, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Ral M. Grijalva said in a statement that accompanied a second letter to Democratic leaders on Monday.

Mr. Grijalva, Arizona Democrat, is leading the charge against Mr. Manchins energy plan, arguing that it would only spur more domestic fossil fuel production and undermine the $370 billion for climate action in Democrats tax and climate law.

He is demanding a standalone vote on permitting reform to let these dirty permitting provisions stand up to congressional scrutiny on their own.

I encourage leadership to listen to its caucus and keep us out of a shutdown standoff that nobody wants, Mr. Grijalva said. Now is not the time to roll the dice on a government shutdown.

It remains to be seen whether Democrats are bluffing or if they are willing to face blame for a government shutdown just weeks before the November midterm elections.

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, a democratic socialist who caucuses with Democrats, told reportershe is lobbying House Democrats against the proposal.

We should not be lumping the production of more fossil fuel and carbon emissions into the same agreement, he said.

Another Democratic climate hawk, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, told The Washington Times she will remain undecided until the bill text is released.

Meanwhile, Mr. Manchin reiterated that the only way energy permitting reform passes would be via a crucial piece of legislation like the stopgap spending measure.

Were all in the same mindset that permitting is extremely important. Im so tickled that theyre all in the same mindset, he said. Should be a no-brainer.

In addition to getting their own members on board, Democrats will need at least 10 Senate Republicans to keep the government open.

GOP senators released their own energy proposal Monday, beating Mr. Manchin to the punch amid frustration that Republicans have not been included at the table.

The legislation, led by Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, would go several steps further than Mr. Manchins plan but also bears many similarities with it.

Mr. Manchin suggested the GOPs plan is further evidence of bipartisan support for overhauling how the countrys energy projects are approved, which often takes several years.

Ms. Capitos proposal, backed by 38 GOP senators, would give states more power over energy production within their borders, including the ability to carry out oil and natural gas projects on federal lands in their states.

It also would weaken environmental rules by instituting Trump-era regulations meant to streamline project approvals.

A significant area of overlap with Mr. Manchins plan is the inclusion of approving the stalled Mountain Valley Pipeline, a $6.6 billion natural gas project in West Virginia thats nearly completed but has faced legal hurdles for years.

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Democratic resistance to Sen. Joe Manchin energy plan grows amid threats of government shutdown - Washington Times

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Democrats are once again interfering in a GOP primary election, meddling in New Hampshire's Senate race to boost the candidate they view as easier to beat in the general election, but this time a Republican group is spending on the airwaves to offset the Democrats' gamble.

According to reports, the Sen. Chuck Schumer-aligned Senate Majority PAC is expected to spend around $3.5 million to help secure a primary win for Republican candidate Don Bolduc, who is largely viewed as the weaker general election candidate to take on Senator Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., who is seeking re-election this fall.

While the Democrats are spending big to help Bolduc, Republicans are hoping to offset the Democrats' strategy by spending millions to run ads against him to help boost his rival GOP candidate, state Senator Chuck Morse, who is viewed by many as a more competitive general election candidate for the Republicans.

DEMOCRATIC PAC POURS THOUSANDS INTO AD BOOSTING FAR-RIGHT, PRO-TRUMP CANIDIDATE IN THE LATEST MEDDLINE ATTEMPT

GOP Senate candidate and retired Army general in New Hampshire Don Bolduc. (Fox News)

"Bolduc lost his first race. He accused President Trump's team of election rigging and said no person of honor could work for Trump," reads an ad from the Sen. Mitch McConnell-linked White Mountain PAC.

"Bolduc endorsed Joe Biden's disastrous withdraw from Afghanistan and said the U. S. Should team up with the Taliban. Don Bolduc even accused Governor Sununu of being a Chinese communist sympathizer and a supporter of terrorism. Don Bolduc's crazy ideas won't help us defeat Maggie Hassan," the ad continued.

11 SENATE RACES WILL DETERMINE WHETHER DEMOCRATS OR REPUBLICANS CONTROL THE CHAMBER AFTER MIDTERM ELECTIONS

Republican Gov. Chris Sununu of New Hampshire endorsed state Senate President Chuck Morse in the state's GOP Senate primary. (Fox News)

A different McConnell-linked group, Senate Leadership Fund (SLF) announced last week that it plans to spend $23 million in the Granite State senate race this fall.

"Maggie Hassan's weak record of rubber-stamping Joe Biden's inflationary spending and taxes has hurt Granite Staters, and they know it. This is a top-tier pickup opportunity for us, putting the Senate majority within reach," SLF President Steven Law recently told Fox News.

Democratic New Hampshire Senator Maggie Hassan is seeking reelection this fall. (Sen. Maggie Hassan reelection campaign)

Democrats meddling in GOP primaries is not a new strategy this cycle. Democrats have already poured tens of millions into GOP primaries to promote in many cases candidates that Democrats argue are a threat to democracy.

In May, Trump-backed Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano was boosted to victory in the state's Republican gubernatorial primary with more than $840,000 in ads run by the campaign of his now-opponent, current Democrat state Attorney General Josh Shapiro.

In July, the Democratic Governors' Association spent nearly $2 million running ads boosting Trump-backed Maryland Republican gubernatorial nominee Dan Cox, in his primary against former state lawmaker Kelly Schulz, who was backed by outgoing Republican Gov. Larry Hogan.

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New Hampshire's primary election will take place on Tuesday, September 13, 2022.

Fox News' Paul Steinhauser and Brandon Gillespie contributed to this report.

Aubrie Spady is a Freelance Production Assistant for Fox News Digital.

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Democrats meddle in another key GOP primary, but this time Republican PAC spends big to offset their effort - Fox News

Yet another prominent Republican has backed Democrat Mike Collier in the Texas Lieutenant Governor election. What are we to make of these cross-party endorsements?

DALLAS The landscape continues to shift in the race for Texas Lieutenant Governor.

"As we become more and more diverse in the state of Texas, our leadership needs to adapt to that diversity and try to represent all of the people in the state of Texas -- even the ones with whom we have philosophical disagreements," Seliger said on this week's episode of WFAA's Yall-itics podcast. "I think thats very important. Dan Patrick is an extremist."

If nothing else, Mike Collier certainly appreciates the help, acknowledging that the sudden GOP support for his candidacy is energizing his campaign all across the state.

The Democrat thinks he knows why its happening, too. He said to Y'all-itics that he thought it represented more than just some disgruntled Republicans.

"I think theyre concerned about the direction of the state," told the podcast this week. "The Lieutenant Governor has outsized influence on where we go as a state -- and we are not headed in the right place."

While significant, Senator Seligers support isnt necessarily surprising. There has been bad blood between Seliger, a Republican from Amarillo, and incumbent Texas Lt. Gov. Patrick for years.

Seliger didnt endorse the Republican incumbent for re-election in 2018, either -- although he also didnt actively support anyone else in the race. (Seliger is quick to point out that Patrick didnt endorse him that year either.)

Fast forward four years and, with Seliger retiring at the end of this year, the gloves are now off. Patricks campaign has described Seliger and Republican Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley, who also recently said hell vote for Collier and who is also retiring at the end of the year, as "dinosaurs" searching for relevance.

We invited Patrick to join us on either Yall-itics or "Inside Texas Politics" this week to expand on that statement. A spokesman for his campaign told us he was unavailable.

As for Seliger, he said hes backing Collier partly for the state of Texas and partly for the Texas Senate. He said he felt the Republican caucus in the Senate has long been working under the threat of demotion.

"In 2017, the lieutenant governor made a big pronouncement that he had 30 priorities, 30 legislative priorities," Seliger said. "No other lieutenant governor had really done something like that. I voted against two of them -- and, for that, I lost my chairmanship and I lost membership on things like the finance committee, which was a real slap in the face to the people in west Texas. And thats the way the Senate runs [under Patrick]."

The question now becomes whether these Republicans supporting a Democrat is a canary in the coal mine for the Texas GOP or just a passing fad.

Collier would have you believe it's the former. He said hes met with at least a dozen elected, Republican officials in person about supporting his election. His campaign later told us the figure was likely well over two dozen in actuality.

"Sometimes its OK to be seen walking into their office," Collier told Y'all-itics, smiling. "Sometimes we meet someplace else so that nobody can see."

Votebeat Editorial Director Jessica Huseman said the Republican endorsements for Collier actually reflect a national trend. Votebeat is a nonprofit news organization that closely follows elections and voting on a local level.

Huseman has spent a lot of time talking to Texans -- residents and politicians alike. And she told Y'all-itics that, while nothing may change this November, Texas could be looking at some shakeups in 2024 or 2026.

"We're already seeing a generational shift in Texas," Huseman said. "So, if the Republican Party is feeling like they have to move back on some of their most extreme positions right now, I think that that sort of sets the stage for a leftward movement in the state -- like slow, and comparatively not as left as other states. But, y'know, Texas can't really get any farther right."

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Republicans are lining up to endorse a Democrat in the race for Lt. Gov. Is this a canary in the coal mine for the Texas GOP? - WFAA.com

With just eight weeks until the midterm elections, things are starting to look up for Democrats.

They now lead the generic vote after trailing Republicans for months: nearly one-half (47 percent) of registered voters say they would vote for a Democrat, compared to 44 percent for a Republican, per recent Wall Street Journalpolling.

Further, gas prices are on the decline, President Bidens signature spending bill passed, and voters in Kansas a state Trump won by15 percentin 2020 resoundinglyrejecteda Republican-led abortion ban, indicating that protecting abortion rights could be a motivating issue for voters in November.

Democrats are also outperforming expectations in special elections across the country. This week, Democrat Mary PeltoladefeatedSarah Palin for Alaskas vacant House seat, and last week,Democrat Pat Ryanwonan upset victory over Republican Marc Molinaro in New Yorks 19th Congressional District.

While these are encouraging developments for Democrats, it would be a mistake to say that the party is not still electorally vulnerable.Inflationcontinues to destroy Americans purchasing power,gas prices while they have steadily decreased remain high,gun violenceis terrorizing cities and Southern states continue to experience huge surges inillegal immigration.

Ultimately, in order for Democrats momentum to continue through November, the party needs to adopt a third-way agenda and specifically, demonstrate their ability to practice fiscal prudence and lead on both crime and immigration reform, while also continuing to advocate for abortion rights and gun safety.

Practicing fiscal prudence is a key component of a new Democratic approach. Rising prices and the high cost of living are weighing on American families, and Democrats cant afford to be dragged further to the left on economic policy. The party needs to communicate about how they will lower costs, secure Americas energy independence and avoid tax increases that strangle American businesses and families.

Further, as crime rates surge across the country with nearly 9-in-10 (89 percent) of Americans saying crime is a very or somewhat important issue to them, per Economist/YouGovpollingDemocrats should pledge ahead of the midterms to pursue a grand bargain with Republicans on criminal justice legislation in the new Congress.

This deal would involve funding and strengthening local law enforcement, while also making the criminal justice system fairer for Black Americans, who are disproportionately victims of police misconduct and are mistreated under the current system.

Beyond the necessity and practicality of such reforms, by prioritizing crime reduction, national Democrats can shield electorally vulnerable members of their party against GOP attacks linking Democratic policies to rising crime rates.

Critically, national Democrats also must make a concerted effort to reject irresponsible bail reform policies, which allow dangerous criminals to go free. This become a signature marker of the current class of liberal district attorneys and is emerging as a major vulnerability for Democrats in 2022.

Even in deep-blue New York City, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) of votersbelievethese bail reform policies have resulted in increased crime. As a result, the New Yorkdistrict attorney, as well as those in other liberal cities Los Angeles,San FranciscoandChicago, among them have faced significant national blowback, with some even facing recall elections because of these policies.

Immigration is another key issue that Democrats can double down on ahead of the midterms. Given the crisis in our country both at the border and in terms of the status of millions of hardworking undocumented immigrants Democrats need to make a visible effort to move to the center on this issue.

Over the past year and a half, Americans have been bombarded with news aboutrecord-highillegal border crossings and ICE detention centersover capacity. For their part, Republicans have been successful in tying the border crisis to the Biden administrations failed policies and to the broader national trend of rising crime.

At the same time, progressives haveslammedBiden for not making more of an effort to keep his campaign promises to provide a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and protect Dreamers.

Thus, over the next eight weeks, Democrats can advocate for balanced, moderate and targeted immigration policies that secure the border, permanently protect Dreamers and create a pathway to citizenship for more than 11 million undocumented immigrants.

Last Thursday in aspeechto the nation, President Biden demonstrated for the most part the type of centrist, conciliatory leadership that Democrats need to practice if they hope to maintain midterm momentum.

Speaking to the current divisions in the U.S., Biden made clear that he was not seeking to demonize all Republicans by calling out the Trump-wing of the party for their attacks on democracy, and said that he hopes to work with the majority of the GOP to find common ground for the sake of the nation.

Now, I want to be very clear, very clear upfront. Not every Republican, not even the majority of Republicans are MAGA Republicans I know because Ive been able to work with these mainstream Republicans Im an American president, not a president of red America or blue America, but of all America, Biden said.

Later in the speech, he urged the country to build a future that does not dwell on the past, not on divisive culture wars, not on the politics of grievance, but on a future we can build together.

While other segments of President Bidens speech were less conciliatory, he largely struck the right tone by appealing to the non-MAGA wing of the Republican party and underscoring the importance of preserving American democracy.

Over the next eight weeks, it is essential that Democratscommunicate an uplifting vision for the future that is focused on addressing the nations most pressing issues inflation, crime and immigration while also advocating stanchly for protecting abortion rights, safeguarding gay marriage, strengthening gun safety laws and securing American democracy.

Douglas E. Schoen is a political consultant who served as an adviser to President Clinton and to the 2020 presidential campaign of Michael Bloomberg. His new book is The End of Democracy? Russia and China on the Rise and America in Retreat.

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An alternative strategy for Democrats to secure the midterms - The Hill

The top Democrat in charge of the partys reelection efforts in the House said Sunday the partys candidates are ready to campaign with President Biden after several victories in Congress and at the ballot box.

Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, pointed to the passage of several significant laws and special elections as evidence the party is poised to combat a Republican surge come November amid shifting momentum.

You better believe were going to stand with the president and say we passed in a bipartisan way better roads, better bridges, better health care for our veterans, Mr. Maloney told Fox News Sunday. Thats the kind of agenda that were standing in support of, and you see it working in the polls.

Despite Mr. Bidens poor approval rating in the polls and economic pains brought on by the highest inflation in four decades, the Democratic candidates in recent special elections in Alaska and New York proved triumphant over their GOP opponents.

Rather than a red tsunami, Democrats have become increasingly optimistic that they can stave off a Republican takeover of Congress. The GOP needs net gains of just one seat in the Senate and five in the House to capture control of the chambers.

Legislative victories, such as helping veterans exposed to toxins, boosting the domestic semiconductor chip industry, and a tax and climate spending bill aimed at lowering health care costs and spurring clean energy, are also buoying Democrats hopes.

SEE ALSO: Ukrainian immigrant runs as Republican to take down House Democrat in deep-blue Northern Virginia

You better believe Democrats are going to celebrate that, Mr. Maloney said. So are the voters, and thats why weve been winning in special elections from Alaska to New York.

Continued here:
Top Democrat says candidates ready to campaign with Biden amid renewed midterm optimism - Washington Times