Page 41 - Time Magazine, Sep. 17, 2018

Politics

of young immigrants. It was a political woman Maxine Waters urged supporters while outgoing Speaker Paul Ryan’s was
stunt designed to draw attention away to publicly confront members of the 40%, Schumer’s was 29%, and Republi-
from the fact that Democrats had failed Trump Administration, Pelosi rebuked can Senate leader Mitch McConnell’s was
the Dreamers. her, tweeting, “Trump’s daily lack of 24%. “I think I have my pluses and my mi-
The following month, Pelosi called civility has provoked responses that are nuses,” Pelosi tells me. “But I have a con-
Trump in a last-ditch effort to work out predictable but unacceptable.” The base fidence about what I bring to the table in
a solution. He greeted her by noting that erupted. The old, white establishment terms of my network of friends around
he had recently run into her son in Palm of the Democratic Party “just isn’t the country. And I get things done, even
Beach, Fla. Pelosi steered the conversation where the base is on how big a threat with a Republican President.”
to immigration, urging him to support white supremacy is to the country,” says Pelosi has been reading about the tech-
bipartisan legislation pairing a Dreamer Sean McElwee, co-founder of Data for nicalities of impeachment, but she thinks
fix with border-security measures. Trump, Progress, “vs. how big a threat being it’s a political loser now. “I have my judg-
noncommittal, suggested they have lunch mean to Trump is.” ment about this President,” she says. “But
instead. Pelosi concluded that she was the American people are not going to ac-
wasting her time and turned him down. DESPITE THE FRUSTRATIONS, Pelosi cept an impeachment if there isn’t solid,
Trump blasts Pelosi in public, but in persists. No one I spoke to expects she conclusive evidence presented in a non-
private he treats her with a sometimes will lose a Speaker vote if Democrats political way.” Some of her colleagues, I
awkward solicitousness. At one White take the House by a big margin. If they reply, believe that evidence already exists.
House meeting, Pelosi casually said that lose or win a slim majority, it could be “We’ll see what Mr. Mueller discovers,”
the group assembled should “pray for a different story. Her grip on her cau- she says. “It remains to be seen.”
success” on immigration, according to cus is principally due to her legislative It’s now dark outside and I’m ex-
an aide briefed on the meeting. “Are you skills and the favors she has accrued. hausted, having met Pelosi after her
going to pray?” Trump asked her. She But it’s also because there’s no obvious morning walk and 8 a.m. hair appoint-
ignored him and kept talking, only to successor. Over the years, Pelosi has fro- ment, taken half as many meetings and
have him repeatedly implore her to “do zen out, stymied or simply outlasted worn substantially more comfortable
a prayer.” Seeing that she did not intend younger members who seemed to pose shoes. After this, I’ll go to bed, but Pelosi
to conduct one, Trump finally got Vice threats, most of whom—Chris Van Hol- will take advantage of the time difference
President Mike Pence to do it instead. len, Xavier Becerra, Israel—have given to make several hours of calls to the West
Thanks in large part to Trump’s un- up and left the House. Crowley’s loss re- Coast. An aide refers to her pace as “kill-
popularity, a comeback is in sight for the moved another potential threat, while the-staff speed.”
Democrats. As many as 91 Republican- also creating a vacancy in leadership. A Thinking back to our conversation in
held seats may be vulnerable in Novem- competition for that position would take Baltimore, I ask Pelosi if men aren’t right
ber, and most nonpartisan handicappers some heat off Pelosi. But the threat is to feel threatened by the rise of women.
think Democrats are favored to gain the 23 real: under pressure from members, Pe- After all, there’s only so much power to go
seats they need to retake the House. That losi in mid-July pushed back the party’s around. She disagrees, insisting it’s not a
would make Pelosi the Speaker again—if a post-election leadership vote until after zero-sum game. But isn’t there only one
majority of Democrats support her. Thanksgiving. Speaker of the House? “That’s just one
She insists that they do, but her hold The idea that she’s a liability peeves job,” she says. “There are other jobs.”
on the caucus has clearly diminished. In Pelosi and her staff, who argue Republi- Once, while she was Speaker, Pelosi
2016, 63 House Democrats—nearly one- can congressional leaders are just as un- traveled to Afghanistan via Kuwait.
third—voted against her for leader. No popular, if not more so. In a June Gallup The Kuwaitis treated her with elaborate
one argued that Pelosi’s challenger, Ohio poll, Pelosi’s approval rating was 29%, deference, calling her “Your Excellency.”
Representative Tim Ryan, could manage As the military plane soared over snow-
the caucus better, negotiate better capped peaks, Pelosi heard the pilot say
deals with Trump or better shepherd he was headed for Kabul. That’s wrong,
complicated legislation through the P E LOSI HAS she said. You’re supposed to be taking
fractious and unruly House. They just me to Bagram Airfield to see the troops.
wanted change. FROZEN OU T, But the pilot wouldn’t take her word for
Since then, the angst has only it. He called the U.S. embassy in Pakistan.
grown. Crowley’s defeat inspired more STYMIED OR She could hear him on the radio: “Our
infighting, with younger members instructions say to go to Kabul, but
such as Representative Seth Moulton SIMPLY payload wants to go to Bagram.” Pelosi
of Massachusetts agitating for her cracks up at the memory: “In a few hours,
ouster. Ocasio-Cortez, who hasn’t said OUTLASTED I went from ‘excellency’ to ‘payload’!”
whether she would support Pelosi, She leaves the real punch line
epitomizes the young, diverse, far-left YOUN GER unspoken. It didn’t matter what they
grassroots Democrats who find Pelosi called her. In the end, they did what she
frustrating. In June, after Congress- MEMBERS wanted. □
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