MOULTON INSURGENCY MELTING
Pelosi repels revolt, wins Dem nod to lead House
WASHINGTON — House speaker nominee Nancy Pelosi hasn’t quite locked up the post yet, but she’s all but killed Rep. Seth Moulton’s revolt against her.
Pelosi thwarted every move Moulton and his fellow insurgents, including Reps. Tim Ryan of Ohio and Kathleen Rice of New York, made to oust her with her long-honed negotiation and vote-whipping skills.
She used the carrots — and sometimes the sticks — at her disposal to pick off caucus members who said they’d join Moulton’s opposition, including Rep. Marcia Fudge, the would-be challenger who ended up endorsing Pelosi in exchange for a subcommittee chairmanship.
Now, the only card that Moulton and his allies have left to play — an attempt to force Pelosi to accept the speakership on the condition that she transition leadership to someone else in short order — is also off the table.
Weeks ago, when the opposition to her bid was burgeoning, Pelosi didn’t rule out the idea. Now, House sources tell the Herald, she has. IF she wins the floor votes to take the speaker’s gavel in January, she plans to wield it as long as she likes.
She still needs to whip more than a dozen votes to reach the 218 threshold, but just yesterday she got Moulton ally and fellow Bay State Rep. Stephen Lynch to say he hasn’t ruled out supporting her. The momentum is on Pelosi’s side.
Perhaps that is why Moulton left the door open to do more of his own dealmaking with Pelosi ahead of the final vote.
“We are hopeful Leader Pelosi will invite us back to the table to plan for the future success of the Democratic Party,” he said in a statement.
But Pelosi seems to have already moved past the insurgency. Asked by a reporter about Rice’s statement that her opponents’ concerns were “dismissed outright,” Pelosi quipped: “Excuse me, do you have any questions about our plans and how we go forward?”
“Let me tell you something,” Pelosi continued. “I’m talking about scores of members of Congress who just gave me a vote of confidence, that is where our focus is. Are there dissenters? Yes, but I expect to have a powerful vote as we go forward.
“Are there any other questions?” she deadpanned.