Tag: Speaker Nancy Pelosi

Nancy Pelosi Is All In Against Trump

Buck Banks

“What is most striking about this moment in Pelosi’s career is that at the peak of power, she is not protecting her position but rather using it in aggressive, even risky ways. Impeaching Trump is a gamble for Pelosi. It has intensified Republicans’ fealty to the President, rallying his base and supercharging his campaign fundraising, potentially increasing his re-election chances. The polarizing effort could jeopardize Democrats who hold seats in Trump territory, and thereby endanger Pelosi’s House majority. With impeachment, Pelosi is betting her own place in history.”

— Molly Ball

If You Haven’t Read Trump’s Letter to Pelosi, You Should

Buck Banks

Donald Trump’s rambling (doddering??) six-page letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the eve of his impeachment has been widely — and selectively — excerpted in the press. But to get a glimpse into Trump’s mind, you should read the whole thing.

According to the New York Times, “Some of the president’s closest advisers were involved in drafting the letter, but they did not include Pat A. Cipollone, the White House counsel who will play a large role in a Senate trial.”

“Instead, Eric Ueland, the director of the Office of Legislative Affairs, led the process, with input from Stephen Miller, the president’s top policy adviser, who often scripts many of Mr. Trump’s public remarks. Michael Williams, an adviser to Mick Mulvaney, the president’s acting chief of staff, also weighed in, and Mr. Ueland’s draft was framed over the last few days.”

Despite the efforts of that brain trust, the letter reads like the rantings of an aggrieved, combative, cornered animal trying to make lofty-sounding rhetoric. But don’t take my word for it, read it here.

Pelosi: It’s Not Worth Impeaching Trump

Buck Banks

“I’m not for impeachment. This is news. I’m going to give you some news right now because I haven’t said this to any press person before. But since you asked, and I’ve been thinking about this: Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there’s something so compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don’t think we should go down that path, because it divides the country. And he’s just not worth it.”

— Speaker Nancy Pelosi, telling the Washington Post she’s not focused on impeaching President Trump.

AOC Praises Pelosi

Buck Banks

“I think she’s doing great. I think she’s actually doing a great job. I’m very proud that she was able to hold the caucus together during the longest shutdown in American history. I think she got concessions from the president. I think she’s showing people who’s boss and I very much understand that she’s in an extraordinarily difficult position.”

— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), in an interview with NPR, on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Democrats have Highest Approval Rating in a Decade

Buck Banks

38%

Among American voters in a Quinnipiac University Poll released Tuesday, 38 percent approved of the way Democrats in Congress are handling their job, while 48 percent disapproved. Congressional Democrats’ approval rating was the highest since 38 percent approved and 50 percent disapproved in an early July 2009 survey by the university. Republicans in Congress got a 30 percent job approval rating and a 65 percent disapproval rating, which was largely unchanged from surveys conducted recently.

Pelosi: Trump Doesn’t Want a Wall, He Wants a Distraction

Buck Banks

“I don’t even know if the president wants the wall. I think he just wants a debate on the wall. And he’s having some difficulty with it.”

— Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), asserting that President Trump’s border wall push has nothing to do with border security, but is instead designed to energize his conservative base and distract the country from the various scandals dogging his administration, The Hill reports.