As Democrats struggle to resolve internal bickering over whether the party should support centrist candidates, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., isn’t wavering.
The battle du jour is swirling around Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Ill., who after seven terms in Congress has so far failed to secure the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s endorsement. Lipinski, as the Washington Examiner’s Al Weaver described this week, “has long drawn the ire of some within the party, particularly over his votes against the Affordable Care Act, marriage equality and immigration.”
Weaver further reports that Pelosi affirmed her support for Lipinksi on Thursday. Asked whether she supports the embattled congressman’s re-election bid, Pelosi waded into the contentious debate with three simple words: “Yes, I do.”
The top Democrat courted controversy last spring for arguing against a so-called litmus test on abortion. “Most of those people — my family, extended family — are not pro-choice. You think I’m kicking them out of the Democratic Party?” Pelosi asked, maintaining, “This is the Democratic Party. This is not a rubber-stamp party.”
As some in her caucus continue to push for a new generation of leadership, Pelosi’s willingness to wade into the debate over Lipinski may signal her mounting frustration with the demanding purity tests pushed by progressives.
But as leaders like Pelosi eventually leave the party, who will be left to stall Democrats from hurtling leftward?
