Outgoing Sen. Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.) slammed the Democratic Party as “toxic” and said the country is “not going left” as he winds down his tenure in the Senate. “The D brand has been so maligned from the standpoint of, it’s just, it’s toxic,” Manchin said in an interview with CNN’s Manu Raju that aired Sunday. Manchin, who is leaving Congress after nearly 15 years, also left the Democratic Party earlier this year. The centrist Democrat declared he was leaving the party and registered as an independent. He told Raju that he no longer considers himself a Democrat “in the form of what [the] Democratic Party has turned itself into.” “They have basically expanded upon thinking, ‘Well, we want to protect you there, but we’re going to tell you how you should live your life from that far on,’” he said. Manchin criticized the party’s progressive members and argued they are out of touch with Americans. “This country is not going left,” he said. As Democrats recover from their brutal election losses, some are pointing fingers at what went wrong and how their messaging could resonate with voters more. Many argue that the party became out of touch with the reality of what Americans want and Republicans were able to speak to the desires of voters.