The circular liberal firing squad has formed–and Nancy Pelosi is facing incoming fire from all directions, according to Politico. After being shellacked in 2010 and bludgeoned in the 2014 midterms, members of the shrinking House Democratic Caucus are making their feelings known about Pelosi’s leadership. Additionally, some House members think that Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman, Rep. Steve Israel, wasn’t honest with members of his own party about the electoral disaster they were heading into on November 4.
It seems Israel and others are trying to talk Democratic donors off the ledge after a being eviscerated by Republicans, which could make them hesitant to cut checks in the upcoming 2016 elections.
Right now, House Democrats are definitely pointing a lot of fingers at the Obama White House, but are also looking for ways to retool their messaging that they felt was not being hammered home to voters by Ms. Pelosi (via Politico):
The list of grievances — from the election losses, to routine procedures erupting into nasty fights — has shaken the confidence many Democrats hold in their leader. So while Pelosi will be unchallenged for the top House Democratic post on Tuesday during a closed-door party meeting, the incoming minority leader is about to be in the worst position with her caucus since the end of their short-lived majority back in 2010.…
Rank-and-file Democrats are complaining loudly that the party’s message operation was failed during the election cycle. Members of the CBC are angry over the defeat of Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.). And nasty fights over ranking member spots have broken out all over the place - including another tug-of-war between Pelosi and Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) over the top Democratic post on the Energy and Commerce Committee.
A routine internal debate over proxy voting for the ranking member posts - it hasn’t been allowed in decades - turned into national news because Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), a disabled war veteran expecting her first child soon, won’t be allowed to cast her vote since she can’t travel back to Capitol Hill. The vote has led to some bitter feelings on both sides of the dispute. And Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel (N.Y.) is being pressed over whether he was totally honest with his colleagues over the electoral peril they faced.
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Pelosi even told POLITICO that she might have thought about retiring if Democrats had won the House, but she needs to stay all the more because the party lost seats. That comment caused some eyes to roll in Democratic circles.
“If we had lost 30 or 40 seats, rather than the dozen we lost, then [Pelosi] would have said she’s never leaving,” joked one Democrat, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “If we keep losing seats, she’ll be here until she’s 90.
That could be the case; Republicans may have set up a map that could deliver them a generation-long majority in the House.
Nancy Pelosi is a strong progressive leader. Sign your name if you agree ? http://t.co/E5sAlfRI0G pic.twitter.com/T0EwxgS2uj
— DCCC (@dccc) November 18, 2014