Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) declined to call himself a member of the Democratic Party while leaving the door open for future political campaigns.
During a Sunday appearance on Fox News, host Maria Bartiromo pointed to a recent radio interview in which Manchin said he would not run for president.
But the senator insisted that he had been joking.
"That was in jest," Manchin explained. "To all of you and all of your viewers, my main concern is how do we bring this country together? How do we make it work? How do we make Democrats [and] Republicans become Americans again and not just party affiliates?"
"I'll be involved any way I can," he added.
"Do you still identify as a Democrat?" Bartiromo asked.
"I identify as an American," Manchin stated.
