{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.manchin.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=e99688b4-2605-4372-ba17-7134eccd4c30", "Manchin Statement on Opposition to Dr. Murthy's Surgeon General Confirmation", "2014-12-15", "2014", "2014-12", "Democrat", "House", "WV", "Joe Manchin", "M001183", "www.manchin.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "December 15, 2014\n\t\t\t Manchin Statement on Opposition to Dr. Murthy's Surgeon General Confirmation \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tWashington, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senator Joe Manchin issued the following statement on his opposition to confirming Dr. Vivek Murthy\u2019s as America\u2019s next Surgeon General.\r\n\u201cOur Surgeon General serves as America\u2019s leader on public health services and chooses what health policies we should prioritize. For that reason, I don\u2019t believe it\u2019s appropriate for America\u2019s number one doctor to participate in political activism. It is essential that the Surgeon General gains the public\u2019s trust, so this position must be separated from the political arena. After meeting with Dr. Murthy, I don\u2019t question his medical qualifications; I just question whether the public will believe that he can separate his political beliefs from his public health views. I am wary that his past comments and political involvement will have an impact on his leadership capabilities and effectiveness. For these reasons, I am unable to vote for his confirmation as the United States\u2019 next Surgeon General.\u201d\r\n###\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t  \n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t \n\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tEmail\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTweet\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t \n\t\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n\t\n    \n    \n    \n    \t\n    \t\n\t    \t  \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tNext Article\n\t\t    \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tPrevious Article", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.manchin.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=e99688b4-2605-4372-ba17-7134eccd4c30"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.7116980161517859, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}