Sen. Joe Manchin dealt a devastating blow Wednesday to Democrats hoping to scrap the filibuster by vowing that he will never support such a change. 

The moderate Democrat from West Virginia penned an op-ed in The Washington Post making his stance clear.

“I have said it before and will say it again to remove any shred of doubt: There is no circumstance in which I will vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster,” he wrote. “The time has come to end these political games, and to usher a new era of bipartisanship where we find common ground on the major policy debates facing our nation.”

Without Manchin’s vote, the Democrats’ chances of eliminating the filibuster are effectively dead in the 50-50 Senate.

He raised the hopes of some Democrats last month that he might be willing to budge when he suggested in a “Meet the Press” interview that he was open to changing Senate rules to allow for a “talking filibuster,” but then clarified to Politico two days later that he continues to support an effective 60-vote hurdle for legislation. 

A talking filibuster, which President Joe Biden has said he favors, could delay but not halt legislation. Democrats have also floated the idea of creating a filibuster exemption for certain legislation, such as those pertaining to civil rights, which could make it easier to pass their voting rights bill. But Manchin has previously signaled he opposes that maneuver as well.

Manchin wrote in The Washington Post that the filibuster is needed to give rural and small states a voice in the government and to ensure there aren’t drastic swings in federal policymaking whenever a new party takes control. 

The West Virginia lawmaker said he witnessed Congress become more divided after it weakened the filibuster to allow for votes on Cabinet-level nominees, federal judges and Supreme Court justices, noting that he voted against those measures.

“Every time the Senate voted to weaken the filibuster in the past decade, the political dysfunction and gridlock have grown more severe,” Manchin wrote. “The political games playing out in the halls of Congress only fuel the hateful rhetoric and violence we see across our country right now.”

Manchin didn’t just attack the filibuster; he also went after the practice of using the budget reconciliation process to pass legislation with just a simple majority. 

“I simply do not believe budget reconciliation should replace regular order in the Senate,” he said. “How is that good for the future of this nation? Senate Democrats must avoid the temptation to abandon our Republican colleagues on important national issues. Republicans, however, have a responsibility to stop saying no, and participate in finding real compromise with Democrats.”

Democrats used budget reconciliation to pass their $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package last month without any support from Senate Republicans. And the Senate parliamentarian issued an opinion earlier this week saying the Senate could amend the budget resolution it passed in February to include instructions to enact other initiatives, including potentially Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan.

However, if Manchin is so troubled by the process that he votes against the bills, Democrats would need at least one member of the GOP to cross the aisle.

“Unfortunately, our leaders in the Senate fail to realize what goes around comes around,” the senator wrote. “We should all be alarmed at how the budget reconciliation process is being used by both parties to stifle debate around the major issues facing our country today.”

Manchin said that Democrats and Republicans must learn that neither party has all the answers and compromise. 

“Generations of senators who came before us put their heads down and their pride aside to solve the complex issues facing our country. We must do the same,” he wrote. “The issues facing our democracy today are not insurmountable if we choose to tackle them together.”