Monday, January 28, 2019

In Which Madam Speaker Brings the Heat


I’m an early riser and my Friday started with the news that Trump sycophant Roger Stone was also an early riser that day, this time headed to court thanks to a Mueller indictment.  It’s not Don Jr or Jared Kushner, my preferred indictees, but it was certainly a good start to my day.

By the afternoon, the shutdown was on hold and Trump’s blustery bullshit not withstanding we all know this is a Nancy Pelosi victory.  I have to say that I have long been a fan of Pelosi and since she and the Democrats took over the House she hasn’t disappointed.

In the last six months, I’ve been reading thorough Martin Luther King essays and they’ve convinced me of the need to hold the line with courage and conviction; to believe in the moral arc toward justice and to insist upon it instead of compromise.  I know plenty of Democrats who worried about Pelosi’s return to the speakership, instead favoring some new voices.  I am impressed by many of those new voices but I believed in Pelosi, in part because I felt that much of the criticism of her was simply old-fashioned sexism of the ugliest variety.  

My appetite to tolerate sexism was never high but since Trump won the Electoral College and the White House it’s been non-existent.  So I was best pleased to see Pelosi back in the driver’s seat.  Her steady command of party order and negotiation, her ability to hold the line when matters get tricky, and her willingness to call out the president on his ignorance and lies have been refreshing and empowering.  It’s telling that Friday’s end of the shutdown resulted in a Trump tweet storm of bullshit and name-calling.  Pelosi stated the obvious and moved forward.  There’s work to be done and she’s gonna do it.  

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