Manchin not endorsing Harris after she backed ending filibuster to codify abortion rights

Sen. Joe Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat-turned independent, said on Tuesday he won't endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for president after she declared support for abolishing the Senate filibuster rule to pass legislation to codify abortion rights 

“Shame on her,” Manchin said in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday. “She knows the filibuster is the Holy Grail of democracy. It’s the only thing that keeps us talking and working together. If she gets rid of that, then this would be the House on steroids.” 

Manchin opposed previous efforts to eliminate the filibuster. Manchin said the filibuster should not be eliminated for specific issues either. He has declined to endorse Harris, a former California Democratic senator, due to her position on the matter.

“That ain’t going to happen,” he said, according to CNN. “I think that basically can destroy our country, and my country is more important to me than any one person or any one person’s ideology. … I think it’s the most horrible thing.”