StarfishSaver
StarfishSaver's JournalCable news stars are whining about Members going on recess because
they really believe that if it's not happening in DC and if THEY'RE not talking to the Members, it's not happening and it doesn't matter.
The laziness and self-centeredness of their demands to know why the Members have the nerve to GO HOME TO THEIR DISTRICTS is pretty amazing. They completely ignore the fact that the MSNBC/CNN studios aren't the center of the universe and the world will continue to turn and Congress will continue to operate even if their correspondents aren't chasing the Members up and down the Capitol halls seeking soundbytes to throw to Chuck Todd.
The Members will be at home talking to - YIKES - OTHER journalists. Journalists tho write for their local papers and report for their local news stations and who have much more influence on constituents than Poppy Harlow does.
Don't fall for the "OMG! What will I do if the Members of Congress leave town for a few days?" fussing you keep hearing. It's not about us. It's all about them.
Nixon's obsession with Ted Kennedy was the impetus that led to Watergate breakin and his downfall
Hmmm.
Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
REPOSTING: March 21, 2010: The Speaker Takes the Floor
I'm reposting this OP from May:
"Nancy D'Alesandro Pelosi never calls the question until she knows she has the right answer, her appearance on the floor meant she had her votes and the Affordable Care Act was going to pass ... There's a reason Nancy Pelosi is revered by her caucus. Because she knows how to fight, she knows how to count, and she knows how to win. And she does it with grace and grit and style.
That's why I trust her now as the House grapples with investigations and impeachment. Speaker Pelosi's got this. And she will call the question at just the right, perfect time."
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212124477
I invite anyone who doesn't fully understand the power of Nancy Pelosi (or who understands it but likes to see her in action) to watch this clip from Sunday, March 21, 2010, the night the Affordable Care Act passed the House.*
https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4799464/speaker-takes-floor
For more than a year, Speaker Pelosi had led the fight to pass the Affordable Care Act, making clear she intended to get the bill passed and sometimes shoring up weary, wavering allies, keeping their eyes on the prize. I recall one meeting where a group of civil rights advocates expressed skepticism of her commitment to fight to the bitter end. Speaker Pelosi looked around the room, pounded her hand on the table and declared, "We’ll go through the gate. If the gate’s closed, we’ll go over the fence. If the fence is too high, we’ll pole vault in. If that doesn’t work, we’ll parachute in but we're going to get health care reform passed for the America people."
Everyone buckled down and kept fighting. It was coming down to the wire and House leadership and the advocates working with them had been furiously whipping the vote throughout the weekend to wrangle every single vote we could. While we knew we were close, we still weren't sure if and when we'd get the votes.
That night, the House was in session and everyone hoped there would be a vote. But it would all depend on the Speaker's count.
The video starts just after Minority Leader John Boehner delivered a bizarre, almost unhinged screed. As soon as he finished there was polite applause and then you will hear a murmur slowly erupt into a great roar.
The eruption came because the Speaker had entered the chamber. And that meant only one thing: she had the votes and was calling the question. And since Nancy D'Alesandro Pelosi never calls the question until she knows she has the right answer, her appearance on the floor meant she had her votes and the Affordable Care Act was going to pass.
She stepped to the podium, rallied her troops one more time and called the vote. The Affordable Care Act passed the House and President Obama signed it two days later.
And for, at least a little while, all was good and right with the world.
There's a reason Nancy Pelosi is revered by her caucus. Because she knows how to fight, she knows how to count, and she knows how to win. And she does it with grace and grit and style.
That's why I trust her now as the House grapples with investigations and impeachment. Speaker Pelosi's got this. And she will call the question at just the right, perfect time.
*For various procedural reasons, after passage that night, it went back to the Senate for concurrence and then back to the House. But that night's vote was the key vote.
How Pelosi Moved Her Caucus to Yes
Reposting from May:
"Most of this the public never sees - but I have no doubt it's happening. And when we do get to an impeachment inquiry (which I think will happen), it will be seen by the country as their idea, not as something Nancy Pelosi forced on them. And I think she'll be fine not getting credit for her role in making it happen because she that's how she often rolls."
https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212151747
Many observers seem to think that Speaker Pelosi either is preventing the opening of an impeachment inquiry or is failing to use her power and influence to force her caucus to support it.
That's not how I see it.
Its not the Speaker's job - or advisable or probably even possible - for her to try to single-handedly whip a majority of her caucus into impeaching just by putting pressure on them. While she has enormous influence and power, she can't, completely on her own, turn her entire caucus around on a dime.
Shifting the caucus mood takes time and a concerted, strategic effort.
She's dealing with different equities and issues here and each has to be addressed differently. This is how I see it playing out:
Some Members want an impeachment inquiry opened now, their constituents are behind them and they're outspokenly saying it - they have nothing to lose and everything to gain in calling for the opening of an inquiry.
Some Members want an impeachment inquiry now, but their constituents aren't there yet. Just as you think Pelosi needs to push them to support impeachment, they need to cajole their constituents into supporting it. They know their constituents better than anyone and they know what to do to move them. Members are in a District Work Period now and you can bet the Members in this category are working on selling their constituents on impeachment. There is not much that Pelosi can do to help them with this directly but she can - and is - taking fire for them to give them political cover while they work on it.
However if they're not able to move their constituents but their vote isn't really needed to get the necessary numbers to support the opening of an impeachment inquiry, Pelosi may give them a pass in order to protect them in their district - perhaps with a condition that if she really needs their vote further down the line, she'll get it.
Other Members don't support the opening of an inquiry now, but a significant number of their constituents do. In this case, much of the burden lies on the constituents themselves to push their Member to move toward impeachment. But this is also where Pelosi can be effective by helping to pressure them from the top with the help of other Members of the Caucus who are whipping them from within. That Member-to-Member whipping operation is very strategic and comprehensive. I'm sure this is happening even if we don't see it because this is not done in public, but must be handled internally and very delicately.
And, finally, you have the Members who don't support impeachment and whose constituents also don't support it, either.. They're a tough sell and, depending on their numbers, they might not be worth putting too much effort into convincing if their vote isn't needed to move forward.
As this all happens, Pelosi is keeping track of every vote and where it is and where more can be gotten. When they get close but are a little short, and the other Members can't move their colleagues, THAT's when the Speaker steps in and starts cracking her whip. And she'll drag them over the finish line, if necessary.
Most of this the public never sees - but I have no doubt it's happening. And when we do get to an impeachment inquiry (which I think will happen), it will be seen by the country as their idea, not as something Nancy Pelosi forced on them. And I think she'll be fine not getting credit for her role in making it happen because she that's how she often rolls.
This is in play...
FYI, I worked in the House Democratic whip operation, so my assessment comes from direct personal knowledge.
Pelosi said she wouldn't move on impeachment until it was bipartisan. And now I think it will be
Given the abrupt change in mood in the country and on the Hill in just the past few days, it is certain that some Republican House Members will vote to impeach and some Republican Senators (even if just one or two) will vote to convict him, making impeachment a bipartisan effort.
While I I still don't think it's likely that there will be enough votes in the Senate to convict, that's no longer a given, considering how much the ground has shifted in the past few days just based on one revelation. Who knows what else will come out in the coming weeks that could push just enough Republicans to vote to convict to ensure that he will be removed from office?
If you're still not sure why Pelosi's a boss, watch this
https://twitter.com/OHDems/status/1177580179499171842If you're upset about the House going to recess, please consider
The Speaker of the House controls the House calendar and she has determined it's better not to cancel the recess.
Considering the chops she's demonstrated to the world in the last few days and how effectively she shown she's the true Master of the House, could you at least give her some credit for knowing what she's doing on this issue - and maybe take a little break from giving the Speaker instructions on how how she should handle her business?
That would be nice. Thank you.
Chelsea Clinton for the win
https://twitter.com/ChelseaClinton/status/1177350159526768641I'm glad the House is going on recess because a lot of work on impeachment will get done
(I wrote this in response to a post in another thread, but decided to make it an OP to give more people this perspective)
And as a former Hill staffer I can tell you that a recess is definitely not a vacation, but is actually a perfect time for the impeachment committees to get real work done on impeachment.
When the House is in session, it's very difficult for the Members and their staffs to get a lot of substantive work done. They spend so much time preparing for votes, committee hearings, meetings, and other activities that take place when the House is in session, it's hard to even think straight, much less get a lot of grunt work like research, writing, and organizing done. So much their days are spent running from the office to the floor to the committee room back to the floor for a vote, being briefed on the fly about which amendment is attached to what vote and how they voted on something similar four years ago, back to a different committee hearing where they'll have five minutes to question the witness but aren't sure what time they'll get their turn so they might need to leave to run over to the Capitol steps for the picture with schoolkids visiting from the district and run back to the committee and hope they don't lose their turn and end up at the end of the line and back to the Capitol for late votes into the night. ... It's absolute madness when they're in session.
Everyone breathes a sigh of relief when the recess starts, because that means lots of other important work can get done.
I'm sure that the committee chairs, Members and staffs are going to be working their asses off during the recess doing what they need to do to move impeachment forward. I would actually be much harder to get this work done if they stay in session.
So please don't assume that recess means vacation or the fact that a recess is starting this weekend, that means the work on impeachment will be suspended or even reduced. Trust me - a lot of shish will get done in the next couple of weeks BECAUSE they'll be on recess.
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