House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
WASHINGTON, Nov 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was looking ahead to a Joe Biden presidency after vote counts in the key states of Pennsylvania and Georgia showed the former vice-president now ahead of President Trump.
During her weekly press conference Friday morning, Pelosi referred to Biden as “President-elect Biden,” saying he “has a strong mandate to lead, and will have a strong Democratic House with him.”
“His election is historic, propelled by the biggest vote ever in the history of our country, 73.8 million, and counting, Americans – the most votes ever received by any presidential ticket in history,” said Pelosi.
While Democrats’ expectations of a “blue wave” came crashing back to earth with Trump wins in key states of Florida, Texas and Ohio, along with losses that shrunk their House majority, Pelosi sought to frame the results in a bigger picture.
“This has been a life-or-death fight for the fate of our democracy,” said Pelosi. “We did not win every battle in the House, but we won the war.”
Pelosi, who easily won re-election in California’s 12th District, is also seeking reelection as Speaker of the House, sending a personalized letter to each Democratic member asking for their support.
In her letter, Pelosi said she wanted to “harness the extraordinary vision, values and vibrancy of our Caucus to secure the progress that the American people deserve.”
“In that spirit, I am writing to request your support to be re-elected as Speaker. I do so with the utmost respect for the diverse viewpoints of our Democratic Caucus, the gravity of this role and the urgency of the challenges ahead,” Pelosi said.
Pelosi’s appeal comes after House lawmakers unloaded during a caucus call Thursday — Democratic freshman Rep. Abigail Spanberger, in a so-tight race in Virginia, spoke with “passion” about the party’s campaign failures, according to a person familiar with the private call and granted anonymity to discuss it.
The marathon call ran three hours, with some 30 members adding their views.
No one spoke against Pelosi, who tried to remind them, they did, in fact, win: Biden is on the verge of replacing Trump, and House Democrats are on track to keep their majority, according to another person familiar with the call and granted anonymity to discuss it. — NNN-AGENCIES
