The House Democratic leader says Democrats should back Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) bid for the U.S. House, as the party faces a daunting midterm race.
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Pelosi was sworn in as the first woman to lead the House Democratic Caucus in 2017, winning the majority of the Democratic vote with a stunning majority of 218-202.
But her leadership of the party has been beset by accusations of bias against minorities and women, as well as allegations of corruption.
“We have to make sure we’re in charge,” Pelosi told reporters at a press conference in Washington.
“We have a choice to make.”
“I don’t think it is going to change our direction.
We are still going to fight to get back into the majority.”
Pelos approval rating has slipped to a record low, with just over 50 percent of Americans approving of the job she’s doing as speaker, according to a CBS News poll.
Her disapproval rating has hit a new high of 44 percent, according the same poll.
Pesosi, who took office in 2015, has faced an uphill battle in the GOP-led House, and polls have shown her holding a razor-thin majority in her chamber.
Democrats have already lost control of the House in nine consecutive elections and are in the midst of a two-year battle to recapture the House.
The 2018 midterm election is likely to be a crucial test of Pelosi’s leadership.
While she has an 88 percent approval rating, nearly all Democrats disapprove of her performance as speaker.
She’s now faced criticism for the way she’s handled her role in the aftermath of the deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August.
“I think it’s a little premature to say right now whether she has a lock on the gavel,” said Matt Stoller, a political scientist at the University of Delaware.
Polls have also shown her approval rating slipping to a new low among Democrats, with the number of registered voters who approve of her job rating dropping from 45 percent in January to 36 percent in April.
The House GOP caucus, meanwhile, has moved to attack her leadership.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi speaks at a news conference in the Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.K., August 28, 2019.PELOS election troubles are just the latest setback for Democrats, who were swept into power with the help of the white nationalist-fueled white supremacist protests that erupted in August after the white supremacist rally in Virginia, according for a report by the Washington Post.
Trump, who was a vocal supporter of the right-wing white nationalist movement, has long been accused of being part of the blame for the violence.
“This was not just about politics, this was about people’s lives, and they were slaughtered because they were different,” Trump said in a press release.
Trump has also been accused by a number of Democratic lawmakers of having taken too little action to rein in the violence in Charlottesville.
“The president and I both agreed with the need to act on this,” Pelosi said at a White House news conference on Monday, adding that “the president has worked tirelessly on his behalf.”
But she said the president’s reaction to the violence and his criticism of the Democrats in general were not sufficient.
“He made no promises, he has made no commitments, he’s not been willing to commit to actually being part or part of what we need to do,” Pelosi added.
“And I know we’re going to be watching the president closely as we move forward with this election.”
Pelo’s Democratic challenger, Rep. Barbara Lee (D), has also faced criticism of her leadership on issues of race and inclusion.
The California Democrat, who is African American, has criticized the GOP’s handling of the Charlottesville protests and called for more police and racial equality training for police.
Lee is the only African American member of the current Democratic majority in the House, according an ABC News/Washington Post poll released on Sunday.
She is expected to be up for reelection in 2022.
“Barbara Lee is the one African American woman in the Congress who will be facing an incumbent in a very competitive election,” said Markos Moulitsas, a former DNC member who is a professor of public policy at the College of William and Mary.
“And her record is one of taking the tough action needed to keep the party moving forward.”