One of the most conservative Democrats in the Unites States Senate, West Virginia’s Joe Manchin, is rumored to be on Donald Trump’s short list to head the Department of Energy, according to sources close to Trump’s transition team.
According to one source, Manchin “is being considered to show the coal people how serious Trump is about coal” and if selected he would be a thorn in the side of anti-coal Democrats for the next 4 years.
In an interview with Politico, Manchin said that he and his staff have yet to be contacted by anyone from Trump’s transition team and the senator has no upcoming plans to visit New York City to meet with the President-elect.
Trump team considering Sen. Joe Manchin for energy secretary https://t.co/74aa0dCPO6 pic.twitter.com/2FVFgr4MkJ
— POLITICO (@politico) December 1, 2016
The conservative Democrat didn’t dismiss the idea of joining the Trump administration saying “If I can do anything that would help my state of West Virginia, and my country, I would be happy to talk to anybody. Other than that, I haven’t heard anything…I have nothing scheduled.”
While Manchin has yet to meet with Trump, South Dakota Democrat Senator Heidi Heitkamp is scheduled to travel to Trump Tower for a meeting on Friday. According to The Daily Mail, Heitkamp is being considered as a potential head of the Department of Agriculture, although there are other positions the Democrat could fill.
A top Trump transition aide said that the President-elect is “seriously intrigued” with the possibility of naming a Democrat to his cabinet, and Heitkamp or Manchin could be perfect individuals to fill that goal.
Another Democrat being considered for an administration position is former Tennessee Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. who was a Clinton donor but is known to be close with Trump’s children who currently serve on the president-elect’s transition executive committee.
What are your thoughts on Trump potentially nominating a Democrat to his cabinet? Would Joe Manchin be a solid pick to take on the anti-coal environmentalists? Share your thoughts below!