I also just noticed that the commenter isn’t saying “Vote out Manchin”. They just say that the Dems should look to gain ground elsewhere so that they can ignore him.

"We will never win an election in West Virginia again, because the state is notoriously hostile to expansion of health care, higher wages, and job security through the public sector" is a thing that would get you laughed out of the room back in the 1990s.

What changed, I wonder?