Index: Lib/distutils/command/sdist.py
===================================================================
--- Lib/distutils/command/sdist.py	(revision 81023)
+++ Lib/distutils/command/sdist.py	(working copy)
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@
         # manifest; if so, we'll regenerate the manifest.
         template_exists = os.path.isfile(self.template)
         if template_exists:
-            template_newer = dep_util.newer(self.template, self.manifest)
+            template_newer = True
 
         # The contents of the manifest file almost certainly depend on the
         # setup script as well as the manifest template -- so if the setup