The classroom was full beyond capacity, with many attendees standing in the back to hear the discussion, as former West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and Bob Shrum, director of the Dornsife Center for the Political Future, spoke on Wednesday. 

According to Diego Andrades, assistant director of the CPF, Manchin reached out to the USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy as a part of his tour to promote his new memoir “Dead Center: In Defense of Common Sense.” 

The book goes through the more than 40 years Manchin has spent in public office, discussing the highs and lows of his career. Additionally, the book is meant to serve as Manchin’s “declaration of independence from the extremes on both sides.”

For Elsie Bencke, a senior majoring in philosophy, politics and economics, the idea of hearing Manchin speak was particularly enticing because of his unique political perspective.  

“I’m really interested in his kind of centrist views, especially in a polarized climate,” Bencke said. “His emphasis on character and just really staying true to your values, making sure that you can defend your positions to the people you care most about, is something that’s really important and maybe a little bit fleeting in many public figures today.” 

In the first question of the conversation, Shrum asked Manchin about his decision to leave the Democratic Party in 2024 and how that affected him. Manchin said he left the party to stay true to his morals and “continue to fight for America’s sensible majority.” In response to the question, Manchin discussed the way he was raised and how that has affected his actions throughout his career. 

“I was always taught that your words have meaning and your actions will be held accountable and responsible for,” Manchin said. “Sometimes the words you say will lead into actions that you regret, and you got to be very careful.”

Over the course of the conversation, Manchin told stories about his interactions with different United States presidents. Manchin recalled reaching out to  President Donald Trump in 2016 because he wanted Trump to purchase a resort in West Virginia in order to prevent it from closing. When he called Trump, Manchin recalled him saying, “I know you’re a conservative Democrat. You’re just like me.” 

Although Manchin voted for Trump to be impeached twice, he said prior to that, they had a relatively positive working relationship. 

“We get along fine,” Manchin said. “He’s completely a different person when you’re with him and it’s social than what you see on television.” 

Philip Rasmussen, a sophomore majoring in political science, said he wished Manchin’s centrist politics — which initially drew him to the event — were discussed further.

“[Manchin] has a little bit of a reputation for being a Democrat in name only, instead of being a centrist,” Rasmussen said. “I wish he covered that a little more. I feel like when he was asked about [his politics], he kind of talked a lot about context, and when it was time to answer, he skipped it a little bit.” 

In reference to former President Barack Obama, Manchin recalled Obama not wanting to campaign in West Virginia because he felt his demographics wouldn’t work well in the state, which Manchin disagreed with.  

“I said, ‘Man, you can’t be writing off different states because you don’t think you fit,’” Manchin said. “You fit everywhere; anytime you don’t fit is when you don’t want to fit. Don’t blame it on somebody else to make you think you don’t fit. It’s because you don’t want to fit.” 

Beyond presidential anecdotes, Bencke was particularly interested in hearing about Manchin’s involvement with voter registration. 

“Honestly, as someone who cares a lot about registering young voters, I thought it was really awesome to hear about how … he was involved in [registering 17-year-olds] who were voting in primaries before they turned 18,” Bencke said. “He told West Virginia high schools all about [registering to vote], which I thought was really cool.”

West Virginia state law allows 17-year-olds to register to vote if they will be 18 by the next general election.

Throughout the conversation, one of the points most emphasized by Manchin was that politicians must work with compassion to calm the modern political sphere and prevent polarization. 

“It’s more important now that we all love each other …  the leaders have to calm it down,” Manchin said in an interview with the Daily Trojan. “I’m asking the president, every congressman and every senator to calm it down.”