The White House tried to convince Senator Manchin to change his mind, but he refused to take a call.
Less than half an hour before Manchin's interview with Baier, the Mountain State lawmaker sent an aide to inform the White House and congressional leadership of his intentions.
The White House was worried about Manchin's decision to send an aide to tell administration officials of his position as he prepared to talk with Baier.
A senior White House official who spoke with Politico said that when top Biden White House officials tried to reach the senator, they were unsuccessful.
The aide said that the senator refused to take a call from the White House staff.
The report states that Manchin did not inform Baier before delivering the stunning statement regarding the legislation, which would establish universal pre-K, renew monthly child tax credit payments to families for another year, and tackle climate change.
Manchin said that he worked diligently with the White House and Democratic congressional leaders to move forward with the legislation, but that he couldn't proceed any further.
"I've been working on this, meeting with Schumer and his staff, whether it would be the president, the vice president, or the majority leader." If you will, from the right to the left, I mean. He said he had done everything possible.
He spoke of inflation, the national debt, and the new Omicron variant of the coronaviruses before delivering his position.
I can't vote for it if I can't explain it to the people of West Virginia. He said that he couldn't vote to continue with the legislation.
I can't. I've tried everything. He said he couldn't get there.
Manchin's actions were found distasteful by Democrats in Congress.
A Democrat with knowledge of the situation told the publication that Manchin didn't have the courage to call the White House or Democratic leadership himself.
Manchin stepped off the Senate floor at the US Capitol on May 28, 2021.
Chip Somodevilla is a photographer.
You never know with Manchin.
There is a sense of betrayal from Manchin at the Biden White House.
A senior official stated that Manchin's negotiation figure was "in writing." Manchin said last week that he could support legislation in the $1.75T ball park. The document may be disclosed according to the report.
The official said to listen to what Manchin had to say. How many times did he say he did not oppose the bill, just wanted to line up programs with pay fors?
With Manchin's action, Democrats are forced to regroup and forge ahead with a way to pass a bill that can both houses of Congress, as they are facing serious political headwinds heading into an election year.
Since Manchin continues to hold veto power over Biden's agenda, the question is what kind of bill can be passed in the Senate, with little GOP appetite for any of the spending plans that Democrats have sought for years.
The senior White House official said that Manchin was never sure. I've never seen anything like this before. He made us a written offer that was doable. Maybe he can flip back if he flipped away so quickly.
The White House called out Manchin for changing his mind about the bill.
She said that if his comments on FOX and written statement indicate an end to that effort, they represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position and a violation of his commitments to the President and the Senator's colleagues in the House and Senate.
"Just as Senator Manchin reversed his position on Build Back Better this morning, we will continue to press him to honor his prior commitments and be true to his word," she said.
