Manchin calls Boehner to allow House vote, end shutdown

Today U.S. Senator Joe Manchin delivered a speech on the Senate floor to discuss the government shutdown. He apologized for ongoing political antics and reiterated the call for House Speaker John Boehner to call a vote on a clean continuing resolution bill.

“I can tell you right now, the unanimous consensus on the House is that if John Boehner would allow the House to vote on the clean CR, it’ll pass today,” Manchin said in a conference call after his speech.

Senator Manchin says he’s appalled by the view from his front-row seat in Washington. He says he believes it would have been an appropriate measure to legislate a transitional year where no individual fines would have been applicable in the new Affordable Care Act plan, but he says resorting to shutting down the government is a careless act of self-destruction in perilous times.

“If market forces start working against us, there might be other forces that start causing shut downs or delays or inconveniences or hardships that we have no control over,” he warned.

Manchin says he continues to meet daily with other members of Congress to find a breakthrough and worries that in the meantime, the shutdown is costing upwards of $300 million a day.