Nancy Pelosi: 'The Republicans Are The Incumbents'

WASHINGTON -- In the lead-up to the 2012 elections, both President Obama and Democratic leaders will likely argue that the continued economic malaise the country has experienced is owed to the inflexibility of the Republican Party.

There has been little room to maneuver for additional stimulus, let alone any truly significant legislative accomplishments -- save bills to keep the government funded. And as the unemployment level hovers around or above nine percent, there is a case to be made (whether successful, honest, or not) that at a time when the government had a role to play, the GOP-led House has held back.

Appearing on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) offered a preview of that argument.

CANDY CROWLEY: I can't let you get away without a political question. But I put the [question to] David Axelrod last week in a slightly different form. And that is, can Democrats in the House gain seats in the 2012 election if the unemployment rate is 9 percent?

PELOSI: We -- we expect to have a full debate about all of the issues that affect the American people. We are about the kitchen table, and what are the issues -– the jobs, the education of their children, the security of their pension, and their homes, and the rest of that.

It is very hard historically it is –- you can see the charge. When the jobs are –- the unemployment rate is high, it's hard for the incumbent to win. I remind you, though, we're not the incumbent. The Republicans are the incumbents.

The idea that the House Republicans are the incumbents in 2012 is inherently a self-interested proposition. And Candy Crowley noted, shortly thereafter, that the GOP's power ends at the barriers of just one side of the capitol building. President Obama is on the ballot and among political actors he has the most impact over the course of economic policy. Shortly thereafter, Pelosi did concede that she was speaking about the House alone.

Still, the idea that the House Republicans can serve as an effective political foil has already been observed in a special Congressional election in New York. And as the election gets closer, it seems likely that the president, too, will start putting some of the blame for a tepid recovery on GOP leadership, as opposed to just touting his own accomplishments.

Comments

[SilentSolidarity]

03:37 AM on 07/07/2011

I think she said that in a FOX News interview, too. She totally destroyed that right-wing talking head with that quick reminder. 

Where are our jobs, Boehner?

[TexasTreader]

09:44 AM on 06/29/2011

When's the last time before 2010 that so many freshmen legislators were voted in? Which party voted them in? Nancy, go back to your cats.

[Grumpy Man]

08:51 AM on 06/29/2011

Seems to me that neither the (D)'s nor (R)'s have our best, long term, interest in mind.

Statesmen are evidently extinct at the national level and we're left to suffer the whims of pandering politicians on both sides of the aisle.

They remind me of divorced parents who share custody and who are in a perpetual battle to be the most popular parent by giving in to the demands their children while failing to promote self reliance, responsibility and concern for others. It seems to be quite rare these days to find a politician who's simply working hard to do the right things for the right reasons.

The average voter isn't much better when he or she votes for the politician who's most likely to spoil them as opposed to voting for the candidate who has a track record of doing the right things for the right reasons even if it results in some level of sacrifice on the part of the voter.

Then again, the above average voters who work hard to educate themselves on the issues have a really tough chore facing them when they seek the truth. At the end of the day, the "truth" seems to be very slippery and elusive.

My pessimism with the current state of affairs continues to grow.

[Toonguy]

09:22 AM on 06/29/2011

Since waiting for a knight in shining armor isn't going to work, it sounds like you're going to have to become the change you want to happen.

[Pastori Balele]

12:35 AM on 06/29/2011

Nancy - Do not worry. The pendulum will change after November 2, 2012. We are going to vote out all republicans due for election in Congress and Senate. TEA Party and GOP are now dead. Thanks to GOP governors abusing American people and for Paul Ryan abusing the elderly.

[Fina Biscotti]

05:13 AM on 06/29/2011

Wow - Your Obama talking points are weak. Try vote rigging - that worked before.......

[Deb Lindstrom]

05:37 AM on 06/29/2011

I'm with you, Pastori. The GOP has dug their graves with their lies. Fool us once, shame on you, fools us twice, shame on us. We get it. Didn't you?

[igotbanned6]

10:16 PM on 06/28/2011

Nancy Pelosi needs to be checked for Alzheimers.

[Toonguy]

09:23 AM on 06/29/2011

By Dr. Frist maybe?

[TexasTreader]

09:48 AM on 06/29/2011

Unfortunately, I think she's just a product of her culture. San Fran Nan, democrat, cloistered elite... she probably can't even do long division anymore.

[RMorr2002]

05:46 PM on 06/28/2011

Dear Libs,

Thank you for letting Nancy out of the basement!  The absolute best thing you can do for the Republicans is to let Nancy get back in front of a camera or a microphone.  She is almost single-handedly responsible for Repubicans being elected in RECORD NUMBERS in 2010.  I know.....she still goes on these rants about somebody stealing her gavel and her airplane.....but  you need to ignore that,  Could you please make sure that she gets a weekly press conference between now and the 2012 elections??    PLEASE!

Thank you,
The Republican Party

[Deb Lindstrom]

05:40 AM on 06/29/2011

Go tell somebody who cares. We don't. And Obama's low profile of late says loud and clear, he doesn't care to try to carry on negotiations with petulant children who walk out of what should be an exchange of ideas, difficult as that may be for some. It just shows childish "me first; me only." You want Obama to negotiate? Try sticking around yourselves and negotiate, maybe.

[Deb Lindstrom]

12:53 PM on 07/01/2011

I COULD NOT BELIEVE, LOL, when this morning I heard House GOP members refer to Pres. Obama's absence of the prior evening ( he was campaigning in PA), claiming that he was really putting out the House GOP with his flitting off when he should be there with them working on the budget. Something Obama had just finished chastised all of them about the day before regarding their weeks off... and inability to be proactive ... and ineffectiveness at getting anything accomplished by walking out on meetings… well anyway, in a rank amateur attempt to stir up support this morning… right on TV … we got to hear from their whiney "we do it all around here" boohooing little persecuted House GOP selves, that: "WE WILL NOT TOLERATE THIS CLASS WARFARE!" Yep, they said it. I guess President Obama and "his kind" are trying to incite a class warfare then, eh? An uprising, maybe? You all having to tolerate "Obama and the rest"; then, is it? Dear GOP members of the House: I do think you've shown us all your backsides now and you have made plain your most authentic inner beliefs. Too bad you didn't engage your minds before putting your mouths in gear. It's out now, and there's no going back... he he.

[LiberalLee]

11:12 AM on 06/29/2011

So where are THE JOBS YOU PROMISED YOU LIARS?

[Blackleaf40]

02:40 PM on 06/28/2011

" ... at a time when the government had a role to play ..."

... The "Progressives" chose to bail out their contributors FIRST.

THEN, they blamed the lack of funding on the other side.

[Toonguy]

04:47 PM on 06/28/2011

By all means, be specific when making such claims. Who bailed out whom? Do you have names? And more importantly, can you verify that those claims are accurate?

[Schaef]

09:47 PM on 06/28/2011

He's probably referring in part to the GM bailout and subsequent bankruptcy, in which the UAW received a 17.5% stake in the new GM, while the previous stockholders received nothing and the previous bondholders lost at least 70% of their investment.

[Blackleaf40]

04:47 PM on 06/29/2011

In addition to THIS GEM:
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/meet-35-foreign-banks-got-bailed-out-fed-and-just-cpff-banks

[LiberalLee]

11:13 AM on 06/29/2011

Wow.
No names, no proof, nothing but wild conjecture.
Lame dude, seriously lame.

[captainad]

11:42 AM on 06/28/2011

Now this is the one that should have been asked "Are you a flake" Our country is in a sad state and people like her are the ones responsible not the ones that are going to get us out of the mess.

[Under Fed yet Fed Up]

02:29 PM on 06/28/2011

So true.

[LiberalLee]

11:42 AM on 06/29/2011

Getting us out of the mess.... that the GOP made over 8 years of deregulating and cutting taxes for the rich--that's just basically like cutting the country's paycheck--and oh throwing away a few trillion in Iraq...
While your party DID get a slim majority in 2010, what have you done with it?
NOTHING.
So much for your promises about JOBS. So much for your promises about anything.
You refuse to consider reinstating the taxes on the wealthy although they paid those taxes AND MORE for the last 50 years, and lo and behold, during which time the country wasn't bankrupt...
Watching your darling flake trying to explain how she and her husband have LIVED off public money all the years she's been in congress is going to be funny.

[JJ Hogan]

10:38 AM on 06/28/2011

I remember how mad she and the democrats were when unemployment was 4.7%. WHERES THE JOBS she yelled. Then they took over congress and passed a minimum wage increase right in the start of the recession.

[igotbanned6]

10:11 PM on 06/28/2011

As minimum wage increases went up, so did teen unemployment....lock step.

[LiberalLee]

11:43 AM on 06/29/2011

I'm not going to worry much about 16 year olds.
It's the adults with families to support that I'll worry about.

[Dean77]

08:21 AM on 06/28/2011

Flake.

[Toonguy]

08:49 AM on 06/28/2011

Wrong thread. You're looking for the one on Bachman.

[Dean77]

05:02 PM on 06/28/2011

Nope, I think I got the right one.

[igotbanned6]

10:12 PM on 06/28/2011

Seriously? Bachmann is infinitely more intelligent than Pelosi.

If Bachmann had a teleprompter like Obama, she wouldnt have these speaking mistakes during speeches of an hour or so.

[wilywolf]

02:13 AM on 06/28/2011

Yes they are. In America, the United States of America, I sit, without any hope that there will be political harmony. With no hope that correct decisions will be made in the interest of the majority-- I.e. Democratic decisions. There is no " democracy". This is a government where our representatives our bought and sold like slices of pizza. We have politicians who supposedly represent the country, but they don't. You can't make a banking law on Monday and be working for the bank on Tuesday. How stupid do they think we are.? Real stupid! Because our citizens are, in fact, as a whole, real stupid. You're always supposed to say how great we are ... " we are the greatest nation". If you don't say this you are a traitor. Well, we were great. Now we are a country run by big corporations-- they have purchased democracy. Pure and simple. We WERE great.

[Toonguy]

08:50 AM on 06/28/2011

I guess the question I have for you is, what are your solutions? Are you going to fight to repair the system or are you just going to give up?

[tbbikerdad]

09:12 AM on 06/29/2011

My name is T i m, THERE IS A VERY SIMPLE SOLUTION TO AMERICAN ECONOMY ......YOU ARE WEARING IT . MY UNDERWEAR IS MADE IN VEIT NAM .SIMPLE SOLUTION TO SOCIAL SECURITY , GET RID OF WELFARE COMPLETELY . GAS PRICE AT THE PUMP HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH GAS PRODUCT . O P E C DOES NOT SET PRICE AMERICA PAYS . SIMPLE SOLUTION TO DEBT CEILING PROBLEM , GET RID OF CONGRESSIONAL PAYROLL FAT , CONGRESS PAY SAME TAXES THE PEOPLE PAY , TAKE AWAY COMPANY CAR , AND FUEL CARD , PAY FROM THEIR OWN POCKET . CORPORATE AMERICA , WELFARE PEOPLE , AND GOVERNMENT , LOCAL AND FEDERAL ARE NOT CONCERNED WITH COST OF LIVING . IT IS ALL TAX DEDUCTIBLE . ALL MONEY SPENT IN LOCAL ECONOMIES FOR POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING IS ALL TAX DEDUCTIBLE TO THE PERSON RUNNING . OBAMA SPENT MILLIONS HIDING HIS BIRTH CERTIFICATE , IT IS ALL TAX DEDUCTIBLE , LEGAL FEES . ....THERE IS A SIMPLE SOLUTION TO AMERICAN ECONOMY . FIRE THEM ALL , TAKE THE PRESIDENT WITH YOU .....ALL POLITICS IS THE SAME .....JULY 4 is just a date on the calendar . I have a CHRISTIAN FLAG IN MY FRONT YARD . ...T i m

[StrawHat]

08:30 PM on 06/27/2011

How come the malware-link sock-puppets with zero fans keep getting through, while most of my perfectly innocent posts do not? Wazzup Huffy?

[jhnnxn]

11:22 PM on 06/27/2011

Relative value.

[StrawHat]

12:57 AM on 06/28/2011

That can't be true -- your crap gets through.

[Toonguy]

08:52 AM on 06/28/2011

I wish I knew. I keep flagging and reporting them and there was a time when not even my warnings got through. But hey, more viruses for HP users, hooray!

[wonderYrednow]

08:59 AM on 06/28/2011

Sharing is caring, AOsmelL swells.

[lynettema]

06:38 PM on 06/27/2011

"House Republicans can serve as an effective political foil"

House Cons have given us the perfect picture of what they are all about and it is not "Jobs" as their campaign promises claim. Unless you want to count the loss of jobs that they have created with their war against teachers, firemen, policemen. All we have to do is look at the states who have elected Con governors along with the House and we know what this country will get. No SS, no medicare, no education, no environmental protection. But we WILL get plenty of "TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY!"

[harveyr2]

05:15 PM on 06/27/2011

If one group says no new taxes and the other group says raise taxes then there can be no such thing as consensus. In this case, consensus is "raise taxes but a bit slower than we prefer."

[UsedtobeAlongst]

10:05 PM on 06/28/2011

Sort of like
" You're still going to the electric chair, but we lowered the voltage!" ?

[manntxs]

05:15 PM on 06/27/2011

"The first female Speaker of the U.S. House of Representa­tives,Nanc­y Pelosi has an estimated net worth of $35.2 million as of 2011.Pelos­i’s drastic growth, from an initial $21.7 million in 2009, is attributed to recent stock gains and smart investment­s. Her husband reported raking in $1 million to $5 million in 2010 from a sale of Apple stocks.

The couple also has a commercial property in San Francisco and a home in St. Helena, Calif., each valued between $5 million and $25 million. She also has a stake in some valuable residentia­l real estate in Sacramento­."

Now...I favor higher taxes/tax code revision, so don't take this in any way other than intended. And I am picking on her as she is one of our legislators who has made her views known and in particular about this issue.

So, HOW MUCH did Ms. Pelosi write a check for last year? You know, that $ amount she would have been paying before the tax cut. How much was her voluntary payment for? Substantial increase in wealth during the 'worst economic condition this country has seen since the depression'.

If she wrote one...that is leadship in action...i­f not, well, put your money where your belief is.

[miketothad]

06:18 PM on 06/27/2011

Why would Pelosi be against a tax increase?

[manntxs]

09:06 PM on 06/27/2011

She wasn't against it. But as it didn't happen my question was why didn't she pony up and pay what she advocated?

[itschuck2c]

09:01 PM on 06/27/2011

I bet she would scream if she got taxed the way most folks talk around here.

[Toonguy]

08:53 AM on 06/28/2011

With joy?