Why is Joe Manchin?

On the Democratic side, current Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, Montgomery County Commissioner Valerie Arkoosh, and state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, of Philadelphia, are the marquee names.

On the Republican side of the ledger, former GOP lieutenant governor hopeful Jeffrey Bartos, former congressional candidate and Fox News fixture Sean Parnell, of Allegheny County, are among the candidates to watch.

The race in Florida also got a lot more interesting this week, as Rep. Val Demings, a former police chief, announced she intends to challenge incumbent Republican Sen. Marco Rubio.

A Democratic win in Wisconsin, where Capitol insurrection denier and Trump mouthpiece Sen. Ron Johnson, is up for re-election, would be a public service.

A Democratic win in Pennsylvania would neutralize a potential Manchin defection. A victory by Demings or in the other battleground states, would be further insurance.

“Winning is the ultimate strategy for Democrats,” Thiessen’s Post colleague, Jennifer Rubin wrote. “Despite the gloomy punditry about the pattern for the party in the White House losing seats in the first midterm, this is no iron-clad rule. The pattern did not hold, for example, for Republicans in 2002 with George W. Bush or for Democrats in 1998 with Bill Clinton in the White House.”

Progressives are banging their heads over why Manchin is the way he is. That’s counterproductive. The best way to deal with him is to move past him, and for Democrats to increase their majorities in the U.S. House and Senate next year.

Biden, Pelosi, and Schumer have enough to worry about with the Party of Q and Insurrection. Trying to keep Manchin mollified and onside is a waste of time and energy.

An award-winning political journalist, John L. Micek is Editor-in-Chief of The Pennsylvania Capital-Star in Harrisburg, Pa. Email him at jmicek@penncapital-star.com and follow him on Twitter @ByJohnLMicek.