We the People, respectfully request President Joe Biden and Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, initiate a request to the Senate Ethics Committee to do a full, in depth, complete and thorough investigation, into Senator Joseph Manchin III for potentially committing Ethics Violations, engaging in Conflicts of Interest, and Abuse of Power.

We also request all Ethics Rules and Campaign Finance Rules be returned into the For The Peoples Act, now referred to as Freedom to Vote Act. Rules banning U.S. representatives from serving on private company boards, and barring representatives and senators from working on legislation with the primary purpose of furthering their own financial interests, which were removed by Senator Manchin.

Senators should perform their duties writing and passing legislation to advance the well being of the country and the people, unencumbered by quid pro quo to corporate donors, conflicts of interest, self dealing, and misrepresenting legislation to suit their agenda and financial bottom line.

Blind trusts, do not prevent senators from profiting from their votes. This issue needs to be addressed beyond a select committee that equates to wolves guarding the hen house. Right now, we have 98 senators turning a blind eye to the ongoing ethics violations potentially committed by Senator Manchin. Senate Ethics Rules are skirted around through loopholes and semantics and the people no longer have faith in the oversight and the loose application of the rules.

Senator Manchin and his entire family benefit from his obstruction and watering down of the Build Back Better Act and the Freedom to Vote Act. Allowing one senator to dictate, water down and hold captive our countries entire climate response, is unacceptable. Holding up essential services to the people who are most in need, is unacceptable. Changing Ethics and Campaign Finance rules, is unacceptable. We demand there be some accountability to the people and country, not to Mr. Manchin and his families bank accounts.

Senator Manchin’s son benefits every year, when the senator removes or blocks parts of legislation that put an end to continued use of fossil fuels. His son is the CEO of Enersystems. Senator Manchin founded the brokerage firm that sells dirty coal ash to a West Virginia Power Plant. The longer the sale of dirty coal ash continues, the longer he, his son and family benefit financially.

Senator Manchin made $492,000 last year from Enersystems, where his non-public stock is reported as worth up to $5 million. The senator claims he has no first hand directing of the company, claiming his holdings are in “A Blind Trust”. However, Senator Manchin knows blocking legislation would guarantee the continued significant benefit to his checking account each year. No conversation needs to be had between he and his son for the deposits to occur. The term blind trust is a farce. Senator Manchin's wife Gail Manchin, serves as the federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission and also financially benefits for her $613,000 investment in Enersystems. 

Senator Manchin received large campaign contributions from daughter’s company amid EpiPen scandal and continues to receive donations to this day from other big pharma and insurance corporations. Senator Manchin stands against the expansion of Medicare and against Medicare negotiating drug prices. This single handed obstruction will directly affect hundreds of millions of peoples lives. No one man should have such power, when so many will suffer as a result. Especially when he only represents 1.8 million citizens in a country of 323 million. 

Senator Manchin also is the highest recipient of fossil fuel donations among democrats and he's blocking legislation that would hit their bottom line. Conflict of Interest, and quid pro quo.

Additionally, Senator Manchin had the Ethics and Campaign Finance rules removed from the For the People Act passed by the U.S. House in March, now the watered down version called Freedom To Vote Act. His excuse was to entice 10 Republicans to participate, but clearly that was nothing more than a ruse. None of the GOP senators were ever, nor are they now joining the vote. Therefore the rules should be replaced into the Freedom to Vote bill to keep members of Congress from profiting from their positions. 

America's entire response to the climate catastrophe is being hacked apart and held hostage by a senator, who directly receives financial benefits from this obstruction. Millions of Americans health will suffer from Senator Manchin's obstruction of the Medicare expansion provisions. This is quid pro quo to the fossil fuel industry, pharma and insurance industry.

We The People are not going to allow 98 senators and the President of the United States to stand by turning a blind eye, while this occurs. Ethics Rules need to be tightened and firmly enforced to prevent this kind of abuse of power.

The following are from the Ethics Committee Rules. We firmly believe, Senator Manchin has potentially violated a number of the rules and should be investigated and held accountable to the people.

Members, officers, and employees are generally prohibited from using their official position for personal gain. This basic principle is embodied in several sections of Senate Rule 37:
• Senate Rule 37.1– A Member, officer, or employee shall not receive any compensation, nor permit any compensation to accrue to his or her beneficial interest from any source, the receipt or accrual of which would occur by virtue of influence improperly exerted from his or her position as a Member, officer, or employee. This provision was intended as a broad prohibition against Members, officers, or employees deriving financial benefit, directly or indirectly, from the use of their official positions.
• Senate Rule 37.4– No Member, officer, or employee shall knowingly use his or her official position to introduce or aid the progress or passage of legislation, a principal purpose of which is to further the official’s or immediate family member’s financial interest, or the financial interest of a limited class to which such individuals belong.
• Senate Rule 37.7– A committee employee compensated at a rate in excess of $25,000 per year and employed for more than 90 days in a calendar year must divest of any substantial holdings which may be directly affected by the actions of their employing committee, unless the Ethics Committee, after consultation with the employee’s supervisor, grants permission in writing to retain such holdings.
Similarly, Senate Members, officers, and employees may not engage in any outside activity that creates a conflict of interest, or the appearance of a conflict of interest, with their Senate duties.
• Senate Rule 37.2– No Member, officer, or employee shall engage in any outside business or professional activity or employment which is inconsistent or in conflict with the conscientious performance of official duties. The legislative history of this provision states that it should be read to prohibit any outside activities which could represent a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest.