On the election campaign trail, about a dozen House Democrats have said they wouldn’t support Nancy Pelosi as speaker of the House. Six times as many nonincumbent Democratic candidates say the same thing. That is, approaching 100 Democrats running for Congress say they don’t think Pelosi should get the gavel back if their party takes over the lower chamber.

So far, however, there is no reason to believe these boasts of rebellion and every reason to believe that Democrats would dutifully anoint the gentlewoman from San Francisco if or when they are in command on Capitol Hill. In light of this, we think reporters and Republican candidates who encounter supposedly anti-Pelosi Democrats on the trail should ask the tougher question: