"Never Trump" is out. "Never Pelosi" is in. Democrats are distancing themselves from Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) by the day and hoping she does not regain the speaker's gavel. On Monday, 16 Democrats signed a letter indicating they will not be voting for her. One of the Democrats on that list, Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-OH), has even been mulling a challenge against her. Yet, for all the Democratic support she's lost, Pelosi may be gaining some love on the other side of the aisle.
It's true, Republicans are beginning to root for her. Even President Trump gave her his blessing.
Democrats, please do not distance yourselves from Nancy Pelosi. She is a wonderful person whose ideas & policies may be bad, but who should definitely be given a 4th chance. She is trying very hard & has every right to take down the Democrat Party if she has veered too far left!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 10, 2018
Some media reported on the tweet as a mockery, but Trump insisted in a press gaggle that he was being 100 percent sincere.
"I think she deserves it," Trump said. "She's been fighting long for it. There was nothing sarcastic about it. It was meant with very good intentions. I think she deserves it. She's fought long and hard, she's a very capable person and you have other people trying to take over the speakership and I said, it's appropriate."
Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY), who has suggested he'd vote for Pelosi, had to explain his support for her too. Critics suggest he had nefarious reasons for voicing support for her, but on CNN Monday he insisted that is not the case. He said many of his colleagues are actually "willing" to vote for her if she agrees to House rule reforms that could fix the partisan culture in Washington.
Republican @RepTomReed tells @brikeilarcnn he's open to supporting Nancy Pelosi as House speaker.
— CNN Newsroom (@CNNnewsroom) November 19, 2018
"This isn't a ploy, this isn't a tactic, this isn't a trolling operation," he says.
So, what exactly is his strategy? https://t.co/M3XVwnpbCL pic.twitter.com/vL7rhEJtXv
When asked if she'd accept the Republicans' help, Pelosi scoffed.
Oh, please,” she said. “No, never. I intend to win the Speakership with Democratic votes.”
The election for speaker of House is scheduled for January.