In his farewell speech to the Senate on Tuesday, Joe Manchin touched on a series of accomplishments: securing mine-worker pensions, establishing a new national park in his home state of West Virginia and passing the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law.
Notably absent from that list: his major role in passing a landmark climate law, the $369 billion Inflation Reduction Act.
Whether it was an omission in error or by design is unknown; a spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. Ever since its passage, Manchin, the Energy and Natural Resources chair, has warred with the Biden administration over the law’s implementation.
Elsewhere in his speech Tuesday, Manchin, a Democrat-turned-independent, often struck a sentimental and optimistic tone about the Senate and the United States government.
