The basement office meeting of the U.S. Senate will take place in Washington, DC, on December 15, 2021.
The political action committee for Sen. Joe Manchin had a surge in corporate contributions this fall, before he decided to oppose the social safety net and climate change bill.
CNBC analyzed Federal Election Commission filings and found that Country Roads received 17 contributions from corporations in October and 19 in November. There were no corporate contributions in the four months prior to October.
The framework for the bill was unveiled by the White House. Investing in green technologies was included in the amount of $550 billion. Manchin, a conservative Democrat who has profited from his links to the coal industry, opposed key climate provisions in the legislation.
In November, the country roads political action committee received corporate contributions ranging from $2,500 to $5,000. Financial giants such as American Express and Goldman Sachs were among the donors. In November, the PAC raised over $110,000.
In October, Country Roads raised over $150,000 thanks to a number of corporate donors, many of which are tied to the coal and mining industries. West Virginia overwhelmingly voted for Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020. The fossil fuel industry is important to the state.
Since the Democrats gained a slight majority in the Senate following the 2020 election, Manchin has been pressured by corporations, business leaders and outside groups to oppose parts of the agenda.
The Koch network has been lobbying Manchin to oppose some elements of Biden's agenda. Nelson Peltz and Ken Langone are billionaires. Langone has said that he will host a fundraising event for Manchin as the West Virginia lawmaker ponders running for reelection in 2024.
The leadership PAC of Manchin received $2,500 from Jonathan Kott, a lobbyist who once worked for Manchin. The lobbyist started lobbying for ExxonMobil in the third quarter after he was hired by Capitol Counsel.
After months of negotiations with the president, his team and leaders in Congress, Manchin said he wouldn't support Biden's bill. Manchin has pushed back on issues within his own party.
In October and November, when Manchin was fighting his own party, his political action committee spent thousands of dollars on hotel arrangements and travel.
In November, the leadership PAC spent over $40,000 at The Greenbrier, which is owned by Republican Gov. Jim Justice. The November FEC filing says the money was for food and beverages.
In October, the PAC spent over $1,000 on travel for Manchin's son, Joseph Manchin IV. The son of a West Virginia lawmaker has leadership roles at companies with ties to the lawmaker.
The PAC spent over $2,000 on an event at a restaurant in Washington, D.C., and over $1,000 on an event at a golf resort in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
It's not clear what the purpose of the hotels, meals, and travel the PAC spent thousands of dollars on. A representative for Manchin didn't return a request for comment.
According to research from Issue One and the Campaign Legal Center, Lawmakers often use their leadership PACs on issues that are lightly regulated outside of politics.
According to the research, the leadership PACs of 120 members of Congress spent less than 50% on politics between January and December 2020. According to the report, Manchin's political action committee spent most of their funds on politics, leaving about a third for travel, hotels, meals, campaign staffing and other investments.
According to a report from the nonprofits, it appears that many lawmakers use the money at fancy resorts and restaurants to fund their campaigns.
It is thought that some politicians are simply raising money at one posh location to pay for the next fundraiser at the next fancy destination, which is paid for by special interest money, with no cost to lawmakers.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, some of the money from Manchin's political action committee was donated to a political campaign. In the early stages of the reelection campaign cycle, the political operation of Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto was sent $10,000 by the PAC. The New Mexico race is expected to be competitive.
In recent months, Manchin has put himself in the thick of several policy debates that affect corporations, in no small part because he can swing a simple majority vote in the Senate.
He was against the For the People Act, a bill that could make changes to future elections. The bill was passed by the House but not by the Senate.
Manchin said he wouldn't go above raising the corporate tax rate to 25% from 21%. Manchin said he wasn't for a billionaires tax.
The Democratic plan to impose a minimum corporate tax on large corporations was supported by Manchin.
He advocated for the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan that became law last month.
The vaccine mandate for private businesses was blocked by the Democrats. The measure won't get a vote in the House.
Manchin has been involved in shaping the legislation that would transform social services for workers in the U.S., set the minimum tax rate on corporations and make the biggest federal investment ever in tackling climate change.
The price of the bill was cut in half, to $1.75 trillion.
The framework agreement was announced by the White House in October after officials negotiated in good faith with Manchin and Sinema.
The West Virginia lawmaker never publicly supported the agreement, even as the House passed it in November.
