CNN congressional reporter Phil Mattingly said that “anyone with a pulse” could tell that the last week has been tough for the Democratic Party.
John King began the segment by discussing the ongoing feud within the Democratic Party between House Speaker Pelosi and freshman Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna Pressley.
He then aired a clip of House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries’ press conference from earlier in the day where he addressed the fighting.
“It’s all puppies and rainbows,” Jeffries explained. “The House Democratic Caucus is a diverse family. We are a passionate family. We are a large family. We will remain united in the face of a common enemy named Donald J. Trump.”
“Yeah. So, you may have heard some laughter from the reporters when Mr. Jeffries said that,” Mattingly stated in response to the “puppies and rainbows” remark, before adding, “That’s because anyone with a pulse who’s been paying attention over the last two weeks understands that it’s been a difficult week for the House Democratic Caucus.”
“Just this week, they’re dealing with their defense policy bill. Progressive Democrats are upset that it spends too much money even though it’s $20 billion less than what the administration wants, even though the administration has already threatened a veto for it. That puts them crosswise obviously with more moderate members,” he continued. “There’s also the minimum wage bill. Democrats moving forward on $15 minimum wage, moderate members have been concerned about the impact on small business, progressive members don’t want to hear that.”
