Pelosi Says She Plans to Stay in Leadership

[brooklynite]

Source: Roll Call

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said she plans on staying in leadership if Democrats win the House in November.

Pelosi told reporters she intends to run for speaker if Democrats win the majority, according to the Boston Globe.

“We will win. I will run for speaker. I feel confident about it. And my members do, too,” she said at a fundraiser for Rep. Katherine M. Clark.

After Hillary Clinton losing to President Donald Trump, it is important to have a woman in leadership, Pelosi said.



Read more: https://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/pelosi-says-she-plans-on-staying-in-leadership

[Eliot Rosewater]

1. GOOD

[Le Gaucher]

2. Good .. Because even if Jesus Christ replaced - Jesus will become the worst person in world

Per Republicans

[skylucy]

3. Yay! We love you Nancy!

[ehrnst]

4. Good. (nt)

[Nitram]

5. I'm glad she's staying. Pelosi is a national treasure.

She has been as solid as a rock through these troubling times.

[HenryWallace]

18. Well, at least I agree with the second half of your statement...

[Nitram]

20. Then we're half of the way there!

[pnwmom]

6. Good! We need someone with her experience and smarts at the helm! nt

[stonecutter357]

7. K&R good !

[samnsara]

8. GOOD!!!

[LittleGirl]

9. I like Pelosi

well enough but she should be training someone younger. She could depart this life at any time at her age (and I'm no spring chicken).
Honestly, we can't lean on the prior leadership to hold us, we must train others to do the same.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

22. Yes. Unfortunately, any suggestion here that

there is nothing at all wrong with people well past nominal retirement age be leading our party tends to get crushed.

Among the reasons the Republicans have been so successful in recent decades is that they've recruited, trained, and elected younger people, then moved them into positions of leadership. Democrats should be doing the same.

I'm reading these days that younger voters are becoming very disenchanted with Democrats, and perhaps the aging and aged leadership is a key reason.

[LittleGirl]

48. Bingo! eom

[Hekate]

24. "She should be training someone younger"? In an elected position, how does that work?

Aside from that, during her lengthy career starting as a volunteer in California Democratic politics, it was never "all about Nancy," and she always pulled others up.

Running for House Speaker is just that: you and others run, and your peers either vote for you or they don't. People want results -- she is incredibly effective at that. The House Speakership is not a national position -- people who complain about the national condition of the Party are barking up the wrong tree when they blame House leadership.

Finally (sorry, I realize I am ranting and addressing issues you have not raised in your post) the day we let the goppers tell us who we should have in leadership based on their smears and wild fantasies is the day we, the Dems, deserve to have our own party go belly-up.

[LittleGirl]

47. Yes, I agree with you

and was ready for any backlash but the youth are our future and we are holding on to the status quo, so to speak.

I think Pelosi is a great leader but her days are numbered on this planet and we need to make sure we are recruiting our youth to take over.

We have to bring in folks that are speaking truth and have a future not only with the party but with the earth as well. She's way past retirement age. She needs to let youngsters (even 50 yr olds) take over. I hate to see her go because she's been so effective (and my trumpster sisters hates her, so she's that good).

[Hekate]

52. So are you one of her constituents? Have you scoped out her particular Congressional district...

...to see how things are run? Checked the ages of her various aides and interns? Who's working for her in Washington and San Francisco? Are they all wrinkly geezers whose days are numbered?

Do tell.

[LittleGirl]

58. No I don't live there.

I live in AZ and plan to move to CA as soon as my spouse gets a transfer there.

But She's 78 years old. The life expectancy of her generation is mid-80s. She should be retired and enjoying her family not fighting the GOP which could kill her. Honestly, I mean the best for her.

It's time. Just like it is for McCain, McConnell and several other folks in Congress that are long past their expiration dates.

And I'm almost 60.

[Roy Rolling]

10. Republican Fundraisers

Her statement will be the subject of Republican email fundraising letters nationwide, because demonizing Pelosi is big business for them. How her public statement works to elect House democrats is something I don't understand. It certainly plays into the GOP narrative, I hope Democrats have a plan that relies on their opponent's knee-jerk reactions. Use their momentum against them.

[LiberalLovinLug]

15. Exactly

Just as Hillary was a flawed candidate not through her own behaviour, but because of years, decades, of relentless fake news and smears where many normally decent folks were convinced that even Donald f'n Trump was better than Crooked Hillary.

So Nancy Pelosi has become a millstone for the party in any new election. No its not fair, and she is more than qualified, but we must admit that the right wing media machine is so much more powerful, and have been for years. And they have successfully painted her as some kind of evil witch that is helping run some kind of deep state Democratic society who's goal is to turn the USA into a socialist, sharia law run country.

We need a new face, a new voice. This was one reason that Obama won in the first place. He was relatively new, and they didn't have the years and years of establishing a false narrative around him. They did try of course, and some of it stuck, but it wasn't a long enough, a relentless ongoing decades long rewriting of history that they had done with Hillary and also now with Pelosi.

[KPN]

23. I don't know if that's any more true

for her than it was for Mitch McConnell in 2016 or any other GOP leadership who have been around for a while. Regardless of who we Dems put in leadership roles, the Russian-bot assisted GOP smear machine will go to work immediately to create a long list of accusations and lies that their mindless minions will lap up and take to the voting booth.

We can't be afraid of what we know is going to happen regardless. With a few exceptions, Pelosi has done a fine job. I' m sure each and every one of us can point out a place or two where we disagreed with her.

I'm not saying she is absolutely the best possible person we could have leading House Democrats, but she's been pretty darned effective in the past and if other Ds in the House vote her in, I'm all for her.

[Hekate]

31. Screw GOP fundraisers. They are using Hillary as a fundraising punching bag in perpetuity. Got that?

Hillary Clinton is not in office. She is not running for office. But they are going to use her imaginary perfidy as a boogyman forever.

Do you not understand what this means?

It means WE DO NOT LET THEIR HATREDS AND LIES CHOOSE WHO WE RUN AND ELECT. IF WE DID SO, WE WOULD NEVER HAVE GOTTEN BARACK OBAMA. WHY DOES THIS ONLY APPLY TO WOMEN?

[progressoid]

35. So we should give them *another* fundraising punching bag?

Also, it doesn't only apply to women. I distinctly remember my former dentist cheering the day after the election when Tom Daschle lost and was no longer Senate Leader. Needless to say, I never returned to that dentist.

[Hekate]

40. We do not "give" them anything. The nature of propaganda is they take any word & twist it...

...until it breaks. You need to look up Newt Gingrich's seminal list of decent words and how to twist them into propaganda. In my own lifetime I watched the decline of the very word "Democrat" until by the year 2000 hearing a Republican political leader say "Democrat" was like an old film of hearing a German say the word "Jew." It only took them 10 years.

Read the scholar George Lakoff on "framing" an argument. Seriously.

They take and take and take. Everything we give up because they've tried to destroy it only means they will come back for something or someone else. They will gnaw Hillary's bones forever. They publish racist smears about the entire Obama family. They attack Pelosi without cause.

Every person and every cause we have ever had becomes filth in their mouths. Do you imagine they will stop because we run someone for office who has not yet been attacked by the RW propaganda machine? Why would they? It works for them.

Every name floated here as a possible presidential candidate is a person with an oppo file just waiting to be deployed, and what the GOP can't find they will invent.

If we do not learn to defend and stand by our own from GOP attacks, we will lose every time, and we will deserve to lose.

[progressoid]

55. Yeah, we would give them something. A gift!

The gift of the Pelosi pinata. She is one of the most well known and least liked politicians in America.

Regardless of the reasons for her unpopularity, she would be net negative for us at this time. And Democrats running in 2018 know this. Particularly in swing/flippable districts.

In the battle for the House, Republicans have made it clear they plan "put Nancy Pelosi on trial and prosecute the case," as the leader of one major GOP super PAC told NBC News.

So some Democrats are ducking out of the courtroom.

In Pelosi's home state of California, arguably the central battleground for the House this year, a survey of 34 Democratic candidates by The Mercury News found only two willing to publicly commit to voting for Pelosi to be their leader if they make it to Congress next year.

....

Janz decided to pre-emptively speak out on Pelosi, as did Democrat Paul Davis, who pledged to oppose her the day he launched his campaign in Kansas last August, calling for "new leadership in both political parties."

While congressional leaders are often unpopular with the public, Republicans note her approval ratings are particularly weak, pointing to toxic numbers among independents and relatively tepid support even from Democrats.

Lamb won his special House election by just 627 votes, and Patrick Murray, the director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute, said his disavowal of Pelosi could have been the decisive factor.

"There's no doubt in my mind that he got at least 800 votes out of that district specifically from conservative-minded independents that were assured he was not going to support Pelosi," Murray said.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/facing-gop-attacks-more-democratic-candidates-ditch-pelosi-n860451

[Hekate]

57. LEAST LIKED BY WHOM? Her district returns her to Congress term after term. The rest of us...

...don't get a vote, do we? California Dems who have not swallowed the GOP Koolade like and respect her.

THE GOP HATES HER LIKE POISON, AND THEY WILL DO ANYTHING TO TURN HER INTO ANOTHER BOOGYMAN.

You still do not get it.

[progressoid]

59. lmgtfy...

The most unpopular figures and institutions include House Speaker Paul Ryan (24 percent positive, 37 percent negative), President Trump (37 percent positive, 52 percent negative) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (21 percent positive, 43 percent negative).

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/elections/democrats-hold-double-digit-lead-2018-midterm-elections-n857466

56 percent of independents have an unfavorable view of her. https://poll.qu.edu/images/polling/us/us02212018_uplo98.pdf/

Pelosi Best Known, Least Liked of Congressional Leaders

http://news.gallup.com/poll/162029/pelosi-best-known-least-liked-congressional-leaders.aspx

Gee, if only the rest of the country voted like San Francisco. But they don't. Those 56% of independents are susceptible to that GOP koolaid and they don't like her.
And while die hard Democrats and liberals like her, I guarantee that the Dem candidates don't want her anywhere near them during the election because they need those Indy votes.

You said it yourself (in all caps), the GOP will do anything to turn her into another boogeyman. So, why give them the ammunition to shoot us?

[mcar]

43. Do you really think Rs won't demonize any strong D in a leadership role?

[TranssexualKaren]

11. With all due respect....

While she is clearly someone to admire, her refusal to take up impeachment disqualifies her. Can anyone doubt that if we had a president Hillary Clinton and there was this much evidence against her that the Republicans would have any reluctance to impeach her? HELL NO!!!

I say F~~K moderation!!!

[HenryWallace]

17. Yes, by all means.....

lets act like the Republicans!

[FakeNoose]

37. It shocks me that you'd post that here on DU

[TranssexualKaren]

39. Excuse me, what is there in my post that is fake news?

[Hekate]

44. It's untrue

[HenryWallace]

49. Karen... You removed a good post!

Just wanted to say that we are not in a war but rather in a bigger movement....

[Hekate]

56. If you are referring to "Post Removed" a jury did that, not the author. When a poster removes ...

...their own post, their name is left behind. It's a feature of the program.

[HenryWallace]

61. Thanks

Was in the process of responding when it was taken down.

[HenryWallace]

50. Not me... It was a good post.

And for the most part correct.

[Hekate]

27. "Taking up impeachment" at this moment means throwing herself off a high building...

...screaming "look at me fly!" until she goes splat.

Nice gesture, if you like that sort of thing, but utterly pointless and someone else has to clean up the mess on the sidewalk.

[TranssexualKaren]

36. Just as an example....

Last year the Republicans came within a single vote of passing a health care bill that had 17% support... to quote Micheal Moore ”you gotta admire that kind of tenacity”. If we don’t start standing for something now we’re finished.

[Hekate]

41. And if we don't stand for defending our own, we are finished

[MarkEzra]

12. A Blue Wave of New Leadership, Please

I have great respect and admiration for Nancy Pelosi. I would prefer her in the position of mentor rather than leader. Ms Pelosi name recognition alone garners more help for the Republicans than it does in expanding our wave. A real house cleaning is necessary...top to bottom. As a 70 year old Democrat who supported Hilary Clinton, I want to see Fresh faces in all leadership rolls. It is time for a real change.

A final note: Same Feeling apply to Sen. Feinstein and Bernie Sanders, too.

[joanbarnes]

13. Madam President. The First Woman President will be someone we least expect....

[True Blue American]

14. Superb Mark!

I feel the same way. We have too many young Democrats in the House that are brilliant, young and full of fresh Ideas.

It is time for a change in Leadership.. Nancy is like Hillary,a punching bag for Republicans. Enough is enough. I knew when it was time to retire. Her time has come and gone! I am tired of losing.

BTW, I think Perez is the wrong one to lead the DNC. After he went on a tour with Bernie after winning I knew we needed new blood. Both Perez and Ellison are Bernie bots. His time is over,too.

[Honeycombe8]

16. Of course. No one voluntarily gives up power.

Whether it's a good guy or bad guy.

[geardaddy]

21. Good.

[comradebillyboy]

25. Unlike her critics, Nancy gets shit done.

[Hekate]

26. GOOD! She scares the GOP spitless. They hate strong women like poison. Anyone who allows the GOP...

...to choose our candidates for us by believing their lies deserves the failure they get. We will NEVER win by throwing overboard our best because the Repubs have declared on our behalf that certain women are "millstones" or "past their retirement age."

[zentrum]

28. So wish we could have

……Kevin DeLeon.

[dubyadiprecession]

29. She did a great job before.

Maybe this time she'll get more than two terms as the house speaker! 😃

[nvme]

30. I am a yellow dog

I was not impressed with the work that Pelosi did. We lost a lot of ground under her. She and speaker Reid caved too many times. Even if you fight and lose you still fought for something. I watched her maneuver us so far that we lost the the workingman vote she and Reid forgot its the economy stupid. She was part of the banking bailout of Wall street Under her leadership no one was prosecuted for that debacle. So I want to see us make changes we cannot continue to reward her failures. I am no Schumer fan either especially since they had the pressure for DACA and they let them run roughshod over us.

[progressoid]

32. Ugh. Maybe we could find someone who doesn't whip up the GOP base.

She'll be the face of every Republican fundraiser and GOTV flyer. Just the mention of Pelosi gets the GOP base fired up.

Can't she do her magic behind the scenes and let someone else be the have the reigns?

[onetexan]

33. EXCELLENT. We need a steady unflappable leader like Nancy

especially at this time. Sorry naysayers, she's the best we have and she's damn good at holding steady against the DOTUS and the GOP.

[procon]

34. Oh snap! She flung it right back in their faces, didn't she! nt

[Still In Wisconsin]

38. Good! She's done a great job leading the Dems in the house.

Now let's get her a gavel!

[mcar]

42. Good

We need our most successful Speaker back.

[WhoWoodaKnew]

45. I actually don't like her. I'd love a younger (so they'd be around for decades) version of her...

(meaning just as effective) but who can attract the middle that we need badly (so we don't EVER have to go through something like this insane Trump era again). That's not a knock on her age, I'm just being greedy with respect to my perfect leader that will last a LONG time.

I want hard nosed but a bit charming. There are many, many people like that. I just don't know who they are and if they're currently serving.

Now, there are only a couple in position to take on leadership. So there's that.

I know my opinion will be in the minority here. She just rubs me the wrong way at a time when we HAVE to win the middle and stop the CRAZY, CRAZY right.

She doesn't have to leave government and can work along side my perfect leader (which I know I won't get).

[GulfCoast66]

46. Good. Now is not the time for on the job training

And for all those claiming that the republicans use her against our candidates, who will they not?

Shit, these assholes still bring up Saul Alinski and he has been dead for 40 years.

We know their base is riled up by women, Jews, gays, African Americans, Muslims. And on and on.

Unless we name a straight white male they will quickly demonize them like they have Nancy. And straight white males are not the face of our party.

Fuck letting them call the tune we dance too!

[Hekate]

53. Spot on

[riversedge]

51. Good to hear Nancy. Stay strong.

[DarthDem]

54. Good!!!!

And to anyone pushing the "she makes a good weapon for Pubs" argument, yeah, they would do that to any Dem.

[Tatiana]

60. I would like to see her keep impeachment as an option.

If she says it's off the table, I cannot in good conscience support her in leadership. And I am aware of Harry Reid's opposition to impeachment. He is wrong and his attitude is why we are in the minority.

We need to put these fools on notice that we will be coming after them. They should be scared. They should be resigning in record numbers. We should also energize the base THAT WILL VOTE by offering them the "red meat" of a potential impeachment.

[Hortensis]

62. The House HAS to keep impeachment as an option,

Tatiana. It's their constitutional duty, as Pelosi knows extremely well.

The reason Pelosi's trying to tamp down talk of impeachment now, when Democrats CAN"T impeach Trump, is to avoid angering Republicans into flooding to the polls in November.

This is a very dangerous time for us. Right now Democrats are more angry and energized than Republicans, who are relatively demoralized. THIS issue all by itself is the kerosene that could cost us control of congress.

AFTER November, Pelosi would only need a simple majority to impeach Trump and send him on to the senate for trial and removal. But she can't do it while the Republicans control the house.

Also, we need the RESULTS of Mueller's investigation. They will be required for the trial by the senate, and also they will help convince many millions of Republican voters that Trump's removal is appropriate and necessary.

So, we're in "shhhh" mode until the time for impeachment arrives.

And we should always look very carefully at the motives of anyone agitating for impeachment, i.e., spreading the kerosene.