House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) told Rolling Stone Sunday that impeachment talk was a “gift to Republicans.” She explained that the election focus should be on a message that resonates with people and impeachment talk was unrealistic.
“People really want to know how we will improve their lives,” she emphasized. “We don’t really know what Mueller has. We have a responsibility, if we have information, to act upon it. But we don’t know what Mueller has.”
She added that an impeachment message was not unifying for the country.
“This election cannot be about impeachment,” she said. “I don’t think it’s in the interest of America’s working families to focus on that, unless we have more to go on, which we don’t at this time. You get the power of subpoena, you don’t know where it takes you. I wouldn’t not impeach the president for political reasons. But I wouldn’t impeach him for political reasons, either. That’s just not what it’s supposed to be about. I think it’s not unifying for the country.”
Rolling Stone’s Tim Dickinson asked Pelosi about Democrats in the House, such as Reps. Seth Moulton (D-MA) and Tim Ryan (D-OH), who have challenged her leadership and called for “a new generation of leadership.”
“Inconsequential,” she replied. “They don’t have a following in our caucus. None.”
Rep. Ryan challenged Pelosi for her leadership position after the 2016 election and lost 134 to 63 votes. Rep. Moulton has criticized Pelosi’s lack of leadership recently in light of her initial, dismissive response to sexual harassment allegations against Rep. John Conyers (D-MI).
Dickinson wondered if the challenges were “frustrated ambition on their part?”
“I don’t know,” Pelosi replied. “I think there are lots of people who have worked very hard, and are more in line for what will happen one of these times. But they’re not to be considered [among] who those people would be. I mean, there are people who work very hard to win the elections, who have been in legislative battles. People who paid their dues. Not to put anybody down. Anybody is consequential. But I have great support in my caucus. I’m not worried about that. And I’m certainly not worried about them.”