In rift with Biden, Manchin vows to block oil, gas nominee

By MATTHEW DALY
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a sign of a deepening rift among Democrats on energy issues, conservative Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin says he will not move forward on President Joe Biden’s nominee to oversee oil and gas leasing at the Interior Department. Manchin, of West Virginia, chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He has great influence on energy and environmental issues in the closely divided Senate. In an op-ed Friday, he cited a plan signed by nominee Laura Daniel-Davis to charge oil companies higher rates for drilling off the Alaska coast. Manchin says the plan would “decrease fossil energy production at the expense of … energy security.″