Democrats Done with Pelosi: Members Have Active Discussions Over Ouster

A growing number of Democrats are calling for Nancy Pelosi to step down as their leader in the House of Representatives following four losses in a row in special elections since President Donald Trump took office.

Rep. Kathleen Rice, a Democrat from Long Island, New York, told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on Thursday, “We need a winning strategy, and I think the first step to getting a winning strategy is a change in leadership.”

The night before, Rep. Tim Ryan, a Democrat who represents Youngstown, Ohio, said on CNN: “We’ve had four special elections, and Donald Trump, four, Democrats, zero; and I hate to admit that it hurts, it’s painful, but we’ve got to get our act together because there’s a lot of people relying on us …” He went on to say that Democratic candidates are having to fight the “Democratic brand” at the same time as fighting Republicans, and that Pelosi is, in some parts of the country, more “toxic” than Trump.

“I think that in certain areas, like in some of these special-election districts, it doesn’t benefit our candidates to be tied to her,” he said.

The comments are a striking rebuke of the woman who was elected the Speaker of the House in 2006 by the unanimous vote of her fellow Democrats. And it wasn’t just talk.

“I think that in certain areas, like in some of these special-election districts, it doesn’t benefit our candidates to be tied to her.”

On Thursday afternoon, according to reports, Rep. Rice met in her office with several other Democratic members of the House to talk about finding a new leader. Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.), the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, was one of those in attendance, along with Ryan and Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.). Another Democrat who attended, Rep. Filemon Vela of Texas, told CNN that there is growing unrest among Democrats in Congress.

“I think there was consensus within the room that there are other members within the caucus who feel just like we do,” Vela told CNN.

About the same time the Democrats were meeting to talk about deposing her, Pelosi was giving her weekly press conference, vigorously defending her more than 10-year reign as the Democratic leader of the House, saying she always listens to the members of the Democratic caucus, that she’s proud of the unity that has existed, while acknowledging the dissent.

But while her face was bright and her speech cheerful, she seemed to flub some words, saying: “I respect the abition that exists in any caucus,” apparently meaning to use the word “ambition.” “It’s a part of our life,” she said. “When it comes to personal abition, having fun on TV — have your fun. I love the arena. I thrive on competition and I welcome the discussion.”

Ryan, who’d challenged Pelosi for the speakership after the 2016 election, commented later in the day that it wasn’t about fun for him.

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On Wednesday, he’d spoken extensively about why he thinks the Democrats aren’t connecting with voters — voters like the guys in his district whom he referred to as people who shower when they get home from work.

“We’re not focusing on the economic messages,” he said. “People in Ohio, Don, aren’t really talking about Russia or Michael Flynn or Putin or anything else. They’re worried about payin’ the bills, what’s happening with our pension, how much does it cost to send a kid to school, what’s our energy bill’s like, real bread-and-butter stuff. And when we’re talking about Trump so much, we’re not talkin’ about them.”

He referred to the Democratic Party as a “bad brand,” and said Donald Trump is more popular in his district than Nancy Pelosi is.

“The brand’s just bad,” he said.

“I don’t think people in the Beltway are realizing just how toxic the Democratic Party brand is in so (much) of the country.”