Dem anger flares over pregnant lawmaker [View all]

[philosslayer]

A meeting of House Democrats flared up on Tuesday over the increasingly thorny issue of whether a pregnant member should be allowed to vote from afar in the party's leadership elections this week.

Democratic leaders, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), have denied a request from Rep. Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), who lost both of her legs in the Iraq War, to waive the Democratic rule barring proxy votes. Duckworth, 46, is in the last stages of a pregnancy and her doctor won't allow her to travel back to Washington to vote in person.

The denial has angered a number of Democrats, who aired their discontent during Tuesday's caucus meeting in the Capitol, after members reelected Pelosi and her top lieutenants as leaders in the next Congress.

“A lot of people felt that Tammy's patriotism and sacrifice to this country warrants special consideration. And I'm one of those people who think it's hard to make an argument that it does not require special consideration,” Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said afterward. “She's given parts of her body for her country, and if it came to a vote, I would vote to give her a proxy.”

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/dem-anger-flares-over-pregnant-lawmaker/ar-BBevImE?ocid=mailsignout


I support Rep. Pelosi, but in this instance, she is very very wrong.