August 10, 2018

I'm sure it's just a coinky dink that so many major media outlets are pushing the "Nancy Pelosi doesn't have the support of new Democratic candidates" narrative in the past 24 hours.

Now, who do you suppose is pushing it? The GOP, of course. They LOVE to demonize her, and without Hillary, they need some other female figure to attack.

And there's the Third Way-ish Rep. Tim Ryan, who challenged her the last time but is now telling people he will run for president and win back Trump voters.

The media, of course, loves attacking her because it's so much easier than taking on Paul Ryan or Mitch McConnell. The stories write themselves, and fit so nicely with their classic "Dems in disarray" narrative. I don't hear a drumbeat saying Mitch (age 76) should retire. I wonder why.

Pelosi supporters recognize the play and are fighting back on Twitter.

A lot of these new Democratic activists don't seem to understand what the House Speaker does, and they are fixated on the Green Lantern theory of politics -- namely, that the Speaker has superpowers and therefore can do whatever he or she wants.

I appreciate the new blood, I do. But damn, politics is a game of MATH. The Speaker can only whip the Democratic caucus to do what they already have an inclination to do. If you want to push policies, you have to line up the votes. The Speaker can't wave a magic wand and make something happen unless there's already support.

It's a lesson the freshman congressional class has to learn, every time. Fortunately, they have Nancy Pelosi to teach them.

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