Joe Biden might be in the White House, but Joe Manchin runs the presidency | David Sirota

In US politics today, the conservative Democratic senator seems to have all the power and is more than happy to wield it

For the last week, Americans paying attention to politics have learned an important truth: Joe Biden may live in the White House, but the conservative Democratic senator Joe Manchin from West Virginia is effectively president. This depressing reality can certainly be fixed, but only if progressive Democrats in Congress are willing to actually change the dynamic - and they have a rare opportunity to do that right now by using their power to raise the minimum wage.

But so far, they aren't choosing to use their power - which is a huge structural problem not just now, but also for the foreseeable future.