Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) has begun attempting to piece together a bipartisan working group to forge a way through the health-care reform impasse, following Monday night’s failure by Republicans to pass Obamacare repeal-and-replace legislation. On Tuesday, Manchin began reaching out to fellow former governors turned U.S. senators to start a new round of health care reform discussions. A Manchin aide says that among those he has contacted include Lamar Alexander, Mike Rounds, James Risch and John Hoeven. And among Democrats they include Mark Warner, Tim Kaine, Tom Carper, Jeanne Shaheen, and Maggie Hassan. Manchin also plans to reach out to Angus King, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats. The hope for Manchin is that lawmakers who used to serve as governors can bring a fresh, non-partisan perspective to what has been a highly partisan, tumultuous debate. Discussions however remain in nascent stages. Manchin is hoping to gather the group together this week.
—Sam Stein
