The latest squabble from left-wing Democrats is that Rep. Nancy Pelosi should be replaced as Speaker of the House if Democrats regain control in the coming election. Is that a good idea?The Republicans are trying to use Pelosi as a scare tactic to get out their voters. That's because they have no real issues to run on, because they made a real mess of the 115th Congress. Everything they tried to do (including passing a budget) has flopped -- and the one thing they accomplished, tax reform, has been exposed as a huge giveaway to the rich and to corporations. They are left with nothing but to demonize Pelosi to try and get out their voters.
Sadly though, it seems the GOP scare tactic is not just affecting their own voters, but also some Democratic candidates. At last count, about 51 Democratic House candidates have said they would not support Pelosi for Speaker. I think they're making a mistake. The Pelosi-haters are not going to vote for them regardless of which Democrat they support for Speaker, and not supporting Pelosi is not a big vote-getter among Independents.
These candidates say it's time for younger people to take over the party leadership. I'm not opposed to passing the torch, but is this next Congress the time to do that? Here are some things Democrats need to consider.
1. There's a reason that Republicans hate Nancy Pelosi. It's because she is smart, tough, and knows how to use the rules against them. She's also a good negotiator, who won't be run over by right-wing Republicans. With Trump still in the White House, we will need a tough and smart Speaker to stand up to him.
2. Pelosi id the only woman among the Democratic House leadership. If she is replaced, it will be by a man, and once again the party in the House will be ruled by an all-male leadership team. Is that what we want? Is that fair, considering that Democrats are running more female candidates than ever before?
3. Pelosi is the biggest fundraiser of all. She has raised about $91 million for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee through July (more than twice what anyone else has done) -- money badly needed if the Democrats are to flip Congress. If the Democrats are successful, it will be largely due to Pelosi's remarkable fund-raising.
I think Pelosi should be elected Speaker for the 116th Congress. At her age, she won't hold the position too long, and it would give Democrats some time to groom younger people to assume leadership positions -- and there should be some women among those being groomed to take over.
Replacing Pelosi right now would be like Democrats shooting themselves in the foot -- and borrowing a gun from Republicans to do it.
