Democratic Leadership Elections

[IceSpear]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Dems were a little caught off guard, due to fact, they were doing well in House races, but losing MO and IN Senate races. So, the tone was tempted down, unlike in 2006, where Pelosi gave a full blown victory speech. She knows how to give one. But, she will make up for it, when she is officially Speaker

[politicallefty]

Even I’m surprised how fast she’s getting this done. No one should ever underestimate her. When she says she says she has the votes, she has the votes. No one in Congress can count votes like her. Ryan and Moulton will soon find out what happens when you try and fail against one of the powerful leaders Congress has ever seen. Some of the rebels will get concessions, but the leaders of the so-called rebellion will receive only primary challenges. Pelosi had this won before they even made a move.

And, as I’ve said before, it really is about sexism. Where is this challenges to similarly-aged Hoyer and Clyburn? Oh, that’s right. They’re men, so it doesn’t matter. Women, especially older women, are held to a very different standard even among some parts of the Democratic Party. We can cast those parts of our party away in 2020 through the primary process.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

Tim Ryan is trying to solidify his spot on the ticket in 2020, that's why he didn't run for Leadership. But, we won't know until Finalists. Heinrich would make a great Veep, too

[lfromnj]

A major problem that switched the game was the after ed victories. It looked like low 30s or upper 20s with a single digits majority. Instead it's now 40 seats.

[Former Dean Phillips Supporters for Haley (I guess???!?) 👁️]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

[Orser67]

Again. Pelosi is a master at this. She might even be better than McConnell. Too bad Dems had deadweight Harry Reid dragging them down in 2009-2010.

I agree with the first part, but Reid wasn't a deadweight (if nothing else, he deserves credit for building a first-class political machine in Nevada).  The existence of the filibuster meant that Reid had a much harder job than Pelosi; I do think Schumer's an improvement though since he managed to get McCain to vote against the Obamacare repeal (IIRC Schumer was the one who convinced McCain to switch from an "aye" to a "nay" on that).  Blocking the Obamacare repeal bill was a pretty big coup for Senate Democrats.  That said, Pelosi is far more effective than Reid or Schumer.

Reid got tougher later on when he got wise to the Republican dirty tricks, but by then Dems already lost the House and it was too little too late. He and Obama squandered much of the trifecta with their "bipartisanship" fetish and assuming the Republicans were acting in good faith (literally took a year to write healthcare reform to try to get the votes of Republican Senators who were never going to support it under any circumstances even though it was basically their own plan from the 90s) while Pelosi was the one kicking ass and taking names. McConnell ran circles around Obama and Reid even when he should've been a powerless minority. It was pretty sad to watch.

I think you're underrating how much the Democratic caucus of the 111th Congress depended on conservative members for a majority, and how reluctant those conservative members were to support liberal policy measures without any Republican buy-in. Pelosi and Reid had to work miracles to get Obamacare and Dodd-Frank through a caucus that included people like Ben Nelson and Bart Stupak, and through a Congress in which Republicans had decided their top priority was to deprive Obama of any bipartisan accomplishments.

Especially in the Senate, conservatives like Nelson, Mark Pryor, and Mary Landrieu never would have voted for Obamacare on a party-line vote if they hadn't been convinced that the choice was between no bill and a party-line bill. Similarly, Reid didn't have the votes to curtail the filibuster until Democratic senators had grown frustrated with GOP obstructionism.

People complain about Pelosi/Reid/Schumer as if they're in full control of their caucus, but all three are/were constrained by the ideologically diverse caucus that they lead.

[Former Kentuckian]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I literally just snorted soda out of my nose 😂😹

[justfollowingtheelections]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

LOL I'm sorry to say this but our politicians are way too old and out of touch with how the world works in the year 2018.  Trump, Pelosi, McConnell, Grassley should be retired like most people their age, not running the country.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

LOL I'm sorry to say this but our politicians are way too old and out of touch with how the world works in the year 2018.  Trump, Pelosi, McConnell, Grassley should be retired like most people their age, not running the country.

according to how you think it works. Young people are not in the drivers seat yet.

[Former Kentuckian]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

LOL I'm sorry to say this but our politicians are way too old and out of touch with how the world works in the year 2018.  Trump, Pelosi, McConnell, Grassley should be retired like most people their age, not running the country.

according to how you think it works. Young people are not in the drivers seat yet.

To be fair, young people are increasingly important in Democratic electoral victories and deserve a seat at the table. Not the Speakership right now, but a succession plan needs to be made considering the three Democratic House leaders will be in their 80s soon. Young lawmakers do need to be involved in Leadership, not be bottlenecked, and need to know when and how they can ascend when Pelosi & Co inevitably step down or die in office, and Democratic voters deserve to publicly know this since we put these people in power and deserve to know how an inevitable transfer of power will happen.

[justfollowingtheelections]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

LOL I'm sorry to say this but our politicians are way too old and out of touch with how the world works in the year 2018.  Trump, Pelosi, McConnell, Grassley should be retired like most people their age, not running the country.

according to how you think it works. Young people are not in the drivers seat yet.

No.  Not how I think.  How it actually works.  We live in a world that is much different than what it was like when our elected officials were at a working age.  Technology is far more advanced, tech compnies are becoming more and more powerful, automation is replacing human labor, and the rest of the world is jumping ahead since most Americans cannot afford to go to college and prepare themselves for this new world.  And we have a bunch of ancient people running the country, who are completely clueless.

[Former Kentuckian]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

LOL I'm sorry to say this but our politicians are way too old and out of touch with how the world works in the year 2018.  Trump, Pelosi, McConnell, Grassley should be retired like most people their age, not running the country.

according to how you think it works. Young people are not in the drivers seat yet.

To be fair, young people are increasingly important in Democratic electoral victories and deserve a seat at the table. Not the Speakership right now, but a succession plan needs to be made considering the three Democratic House leaders will be in their 80s soon. Young lawmakers do need to be involved in Leadership, not be bottlenecked, and need to know when and how they can ascend when Pelosi & Co inevitably step down or die in office, and Democratic voters deserve to publicly know this since we put these people in power and deserve to know how an inevitable transfer of power will happen.

I want to make it clear that I do think Pelosi should be Speaker. However, I do want Pelosi and Leadership to publicly acknowledge the need for an eventual succession and to place more younger legislators in position of power so we know Pelosi & Co are prepared for a party without them (so far we've mostly just gotten lip service). Young voters are so integral, increasingly so, and we need to place younger legislators in positions of leadership in order to reflect this:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/monkey-cage/wp/2018/11/10/these-5-charts-explain-who-voted-how-in-the-2018-midterm-election/

https://mashable.com/article/youth-voter-turnout-midterm-elections.amp

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna934516

The median age of the United States is 37.7, but our Democratic House leaders will all be in their 80s in a year or two: https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/community_facts.xhtml?src=bkmk

Pelosi has been a strong leader and we need her for at least one more term, but she needs to let us know there's a plan for younger leadership because we can't, and shouldn't, rely on her forever. We Democrats have a tendency to calcify our leadership and bristle whenever there's talk of new leadership (I'm not talking about a coup, but honest conversation about eventual transfer of power). We need to hash this out before it catches up to us.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

LOL I'm sorry to say this but our politicians are way too old and out of touch with how the world works in the year 2018.  Trump, Pelosi, McConnell, Grassley should be retired like most people their age, not running the country.

according to how you think it works. Young people are not in the drivers seat yet.

To be fair, young people are increasingly important in Democratic electoral victories and deserve a seat at the table. Not the Speakership right now, but a succession plan needs to be made considering the three Democratic House leaders will be in their 80s soon. Young lawmakers do need to be involved in Leadership, not be bottlenecked, and need to know when and how they can ascend when Pelosi & Co inevitably step down or die in office, and Democratic voters deserve to publicly know this since we put these people in power and deserve to know how an inevitable transfer of power will happen.

The way I see it, Pelosi is training the younger generation as we speak - so that when she does leave, we'll be ready.
Kneejerking to "she's too old, she has to go!" is just misreading the entire situation.

[Former Kentuckian]

Did anyone else see Pelosi's victory speech on election night? It was so incoherent and nonsensical, I loved it. "Let's hear it for pre existing medical conditions!" LMAO.

Luckily what she lacks in rhetorical ability she more than makes up for in legislative prowess.

I thought it was a terrific and shrewd speech. "Incoherent and nonsensical" appeals to voters, which is how Trump got elected. You and I may struggle to understand that, but fortunately Pelosi has a more finely attuned political antennae than most of us, and she adjusts her rhetoric to fit the needs and tastes of the era, one of the marks that distinguishes a true leader.

LOL I'm sorry to say this but our politicians are way too old and out of touch with how the world works in the year 2018.  Trump, Pelosi, McConnell, Grassley should be retired like most people their age, not running the country.

according to how you think it works. Young people are not in the drivers seat yet.

To be fair, young people are increasingly important in Democratic electoral victories and deserve a seat at the table. Not the Speakership right now, but a succession plan needs to be made considering the three Democratic House leaders will be in their 80s soon. Young lawmakers do need to be involved in Leadership, not be bottlenecked, and need to know when and how they can ascend when Pelosi & Co inevitably step down or die in office, and Democratic voters deserve to publicly know this since we put these people in power and deserve to know how an inevitable transfer of power will happen.

The way I see it, Pelosi is training the younger generation as we speak - so that when she does leave, we'll be ready.
Kneejerking to "she's too old, she has to go!" is just misreading the entire situation.

I'm not trying to argue and I absolutely believe we need Pelosi to have the gavel in January. I just want transparency and acknowledgment regarding the next generation of leadership.

[RogueBeaver]

https://twitter.com/mikedebonis/status/1066751401395716096

[Former Dean Phillips Supporters for Haley (I guess???!?) 👁️]

https://twitter.com/mikedebonis/status/1066751401395716096

Lynch is backpedaling to try to save himself from a primary challenge.

Between this and TJ Cox presumably winning and voting for Pelosi, Nancy should be well on her way to having all the votes she needs lined up in a neat little row. This is the most pathetic leadership challenge I have ever seen. It is a leadership challenge without even a challenger, which really says it all.

[Mr. Morden]

This is the most pathetic leadership challenge I have ever seen. It is a leadership challenge without even a challenger, which really says it all.

What I'm unclear on though is how many of the mutineers actually care.  Many of them made commitments during the campaign to vote against Pelosi.  They made those commitments because she's unpopular, and so they were doing it for political advantage.  And now those that are following through and saying they'll vote against her are most likely again doing so because they feel it's necessary to follow through on their campaign rhetoric.

But that doesn't mean that they personally think she should be replaced.  It just means that they feel it's necessary to go through the motions of opposing her, because that's what makes political sense for them.  They may not personally care whether the challenge succeeds.

[politicallefty]

This is the most pathetic leadership challenge I have ever seen. It is a leadership challenge without even a challenger, which really says it all.

What I'm unclear on though is how many of the mutineers actually care.  Many of them made commitments during the campaign to vote against Pelosi.  They made those commitments because she's unpopular, and so they were doing it for political advantage.  And now those that are following through and saying they'll vote against her are most likely again doing so because they feel it's necessary to follow through on their campaign rhetoric.

But that doesn't mean that they personally think she should be replaced.  It just means that they feel it's necessary to go through the motions of opposing her, because that's what makes political sense for them.  They may not personally care whether the challenge succeeds.

This isn’t an uprising of new members though. This is a small group of anti-Pelosi incumbents (i.e. Ryan and Moulton) using them opportunistically. They are the ones moving forward with the notion of denying a majority on the floor.

A leadership challenge is perfectly fine, but it should play out within the Democratic Caucus. If it fails, those new members that made a campaign promise to not vote for Pelosi can keep that promise by voting present on the floor in January.

[RogueBeaver]

I'd say this "rebellion" is over but it never really began. https://twitter.com/costareports/status/1067106285307326464

[Antonio the Sixth]

A "1-year pledge" is unacceptable. She needs to serve at least one full term, and honestly possibly two if a Democrat wins in 2020 and we need a strong Speaker to shepherd legislation through.

Hoyer absolutely needs to go, though. Hopefully they replace him with a fresher face who isn't a Blue Dog.

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

Why would Pelosi make any concessions to this moron?

[henster]

Why would Pelosi make any concessions to this moron?

To give the freshman more breathing room, there are still 10 or 12 'safe' Dems who aren't voting for her if they all do then the freshman who pledged not to vote Pelosi should be fine.

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

Why would Pelosi make any concessions to this moron?

To give the freshman more breathing room, there are still 10 or 12 'safe' Dems who aren't voting for her if they all do then the freshman who pledged not to vote Pelosi should be fine.

This has been over for a while, now Moulton's just looking for a face-saving parachute.  Hopefully, he won't get one.

[Mr. Morden]

This is the most pathetic leadership challenge I have ever seen. It is a leadership challenge without even a challenger, which really says it all.

What I'm unclear on though is how many of the mutineers actually care.  Many of them made commitments during the campaign to vote against Pelosi.  They made those commitments because she's unpopular, and so they were doing it for political advantage.  And now those that are following through and saying they'll vote against her are most likely again doing so because they feel it's necessary to follow through on their campaign rhetoric.

But that doesn't mean that they personally think she should be replaced.  It just means that they feel it's necessary to go through the motions of opposing her, because that's what makes political sense for them.  They may not personally care whether the challenge succeeds.

This isn’t an uprising of new members though. This is a small group of anti-Pelosi incumbents (i.e. Ryan and Moulton) using them opportunistically. They are the ones moving forward with the notion of denying a majority on the floor.

Led by them, sure.  What I'm asking though is how many of the members signing that letter of no support are/were just people who pledged not to back her during the midterm campaign because they saw that to be in their political interest (and are now just going through the motions), who don't actually care if the rebellion succeeds?