 But he didn't. Senior Democrats heard of Manchin's plans and started making calls to the independent minded senator who once used a Sunday show appearance to announce his opposition to Biden's top agenda item and effectively kill it. A full court press was quickly assembled to help dissuade Manchin from appearing on the show. That effort included a weekend phone call from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. No one wants to be the first one to knife Julius Caesar, one Democratic Party official said. Here's the thing. Doesn't matter who doesn't want to be the first one. Julius Caesar gets knifed.