Politicians From Baltimore

"In this room, our colleagues across history have abolished slavery; granted women the right to vote; established Social Security and Medicare; offered a hand to the weak, care to the sick, education to the young and hope to the many. Indeed, it is here, under the gaze of our patriarch, George Washington, in the people’s House, that we have done the people’s work. My colleagues, I stand before you as speaker of the House, as a wife, a mother, a grandmother, a devout Catholic, a proud Democrat and a patriotic American, a citizen of the greatest republic in the history of the world — which President Lincoln called the last best hope on Earth. Indeed, in the words attributed to another of our colleagues, the legendary Daniel Webster, he said: "Hold on, my friends, to the Constitution of your country and the government established under it. Miracles do not cluster. That which has happened but once in 6,000 years cannot be expected to happen often." Indeed, American democracy is majestic. But it is fragile. Many of us here have witnessed its fragility firsthand — tragically, in this chamber. And so democracy must be forever defended from forces that wish it harm."

"Last week, the American people spoke, and their voices were raised in defense of liberty, of the rule of law and of democracy itself. With these elections, the people stood in the breach and repelled the assault on democracy. They resoundingly rejected violence and insurrection, and in doing so gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. And now we owe to the American people our very best, to deliver on their faith. To forever reach for the more perfect union — the glorious horizon that our founders promised. The questions before this Congress and at this moment are urgent. Questions about the ideals that this House is charged by the Constitution to preserve and protect. Establish justice. Ensure domestic tranquillity. Provide for the common defense. Promote the general welfare. And secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. Our posterity. Our children. Babies born today will live into the next century. And our decisions will determine their future for generations to come. While we will have our disagreements on policy, we must remain fully committed to our shared fundamental mission, to hold strong to our most treasured democratic ideals, to cherish the spark of divinity in each and every one of us, and to always put our country first. In their infinite wisdom, our founders gave us their guidance: e pluribus unum. From the many, one. They could not have imagined how large our country would become or how different we would be from one another. But they knew we had to be united as one. We the people. One country. One destiny."

"It’s been with great pride in my 35 years in the House I have seen this body grow more reflective of our great nation, our beautiful nation. When I came to the Congress in 1987, there were 12 Democratic women. Now there are over 90. And we want more. The new members of our Democratic caucus will be about 75 percent women, people of color and L.G.B.T.Q. And we have brought more voices to the decision-making table. When I entered leadership in 2002, there were eight of us. Today, there are 17 members of the leadership. When I first came to the floor at 6 years old, never would I have thought that someday I would go from homemaker to House speaker. In fact, I never — in fact, I never intended to run for public office. Mommy and Daddy taught us through their example that public service is a noble calling and that we all have a responsibility to help others. In our family, my brother Tommy then became mayor of Baltimore also. But it’s been my privilege to play a part in forging extraordinary progress for the American people."

"I have enjoyed working with three presidents, achieving historic investments in clean energy with President George Bush; transformative health care reform with President Barack Obama; and forging — and forging the future from infrastructure to health care to climate action with President Joe Biden. Now we must move boldly into the future, grounded by the principles that have propelled us this far and open to fresh possibilities for the future."

"Scripture teaches us that for everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. My friends, no matter what title you all, my colleagues, have bestowed upon me — speaker, leader, whip — there is no greater official honor for me than to stand on this floor and to speak for the people of San Francisco. This I will continue to do as a member of the House, speaking for the people of San Francisco, serving the great state of California and defending our Constitution. And with great confidence in our caucus, I will not seek re-election to Democratic leadership in the next Congress. For me, the hour has come for a new generation to lead the Democratic caucus that I so deeply respect. And I am grateful that so many are ready and willing to shoulder this awesome responsibility."

"In this House, we begin each day with a prayer and a pledge to the flag. And every day I am in awe of the majestic miracle that is American democracy. As we participate in a hallmark of our republic — the peaceful, orderly transition from one Congress to the next — let us consider the words of, again, President Lincoln, spoken during one of America’s darkest hours. He called upon us to come together, to swell the chorus of the union, when once again touched as surely they will be by the better angels of our nature. That again is the task at hand. A new day is dawning on the horizon, and I look forward, always forward, to the unfolding story of our nation, a story of light and love, of patriotism and progress, of many becoming one. And always an unfinished mission to make the dreams of today the reality of tomorrow."

"It is clear that House Democratic Members and candidates are strongly outperforming expectations across the country. As states continue to tabulate the final results, every vote must be counted as cast. Many thanks to our grassroots volunteers for enabling every voter to have their say in our Democracy"

"In the spirit of your title of hard talk, you are completely wrong."

"For them to call for a ceasefire is Mr Putin’s message. Make no mistake, this is directly connected to what he would like to see. Same thing with Ukraine. It’s about Putin’s message. I think some of these protesters are spontaneous and organic and sincere. Some, I think, are connected to Russia. Seeds or plants. I think some financing should be investigated. And I want to ask the FBI to investigate that."

"Go back to China, that’s where your headquarters is."

"I want him to do whatever he decides to do."

"Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy, so gleefully embraced political violence, so willfully betrayed his oath of office."

"Let us not forget who assaulted democracy on January 6th. [pause] He did!"

"But let us not forget who saved democracy that day. [pause] We did!"

"The parable of January 6th reminds us that our democracy is only as strong as the courage and commitment of those entrusted with its care. And we must choose leaders who believe in free and fair elections and who respect the peaceful transfer of power. [...] The choice couldn't be clearer. Those leaders are Vice President Harris and Governor Walz."

"had the president gotten out sooner, there may have been other candidates in the race"

"Where is Nancy, where is Nancy?"

"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is similarly enamored of this rhetoric of bipartisan comity in the face of a Republican Party whose members are caught in the grip of a cult of personality marked by conspiratorial thinking and an open contempt for electoral democracy. “It might come as a surprise to some of you that the president I quote most often is President Reagan,” Pelosi said at the ribbon-cutting for the Washington branch of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute. “The good humor of our president was really a tonic for the nation, the gentleman that he was.” And last month, she told an audience in Miami that she wants a “strong Republican Party” that can return to where it was when it “cared about a woman’s right to choose” and “cared about the environment.” Of course, the ideologically moderate Republican Party that Pelosi seems to want resurrected was largely dead by the time she entered national politics in the late 1970s, bludgeoned into submission with the notable help of Ronald Reagan, among other figures."

"I think there’s a deeper divide, between a politics that sees the grass roots as an asset to use and cultivate versus one that treats it as a complication to manage. It’s a “leader knows best” approach that may squander the Democratic Party’s advantage of enthusiasm and drive against a corrupt and unpopular president. It even seems as though for Democrats like Pelosi, the only political actions that truly matter are either in the legislature or at the ballot box. It’s an understandable view for a leadership class whose political memories stretch back to the devastating Democratic losses of 1968 and 1972 (to say nothing of 1980 and 1984). But it’s also bred of a deep aversion to risk-taking, even when circumstances warrant bold action."

"A large number of proud Jewish Americans — raised to believe in civil liberties and open discussion — are appalled by the campaign to muzzle Rep. Ilhan Omar, as well as Speaker Pelosi’s role in it. We’re also appalled that human-rights-abusing Israel is virtually off-limits to debate. … Rep. Omar has made a simple and undeniable point — that AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) and the funding it influences exert extraordinary power over Congress. Disputing that point is flat-earther terrain. The Capitol Hill farce of an “anti-hate” resolution would provide still more evidence on behalf of her argument. Unfortunately, all the vague media references to Rep Omar’s “anti-Semitic remarks” obscure how truthful and non-hateful those comments were."

"in 2002 and 2003, top Democrats, including current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, raised almost no formal objections to torture techniques, including waterboarding, after being briefed on it by the CIA."

"I think Nancy Pelosi is extremely qualified to be speaker of the House, because she has been speaker of the House. I trust her leadership. I trust her judgment. I think that she is the person we need right now. And perhaps when we move forward and, you know, our politics isn’t as, you know, in a critical sort of era, that, yes, we—if she’s ready to pass the mantle on, I will absolutely support another qualified individual. But currently, I think she would do a good job."

"The Speaker is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is thankful for the robust protection the vaccine has provided"

"The leadership of the party, the Clintons, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Tom Perez, are creations of corporate America. In an open and democratic political process, one not dominated by party elites and corporate money, these people would not hold political power. They know this. They would rather implode the entire system than give up their positions of privilege. And that, I fear, is what will happen. The idea that the Democratic Party is in any way a bulwark against despotism defies the last three decades of its political activity. It is the guarantor of despotism."

"I don't think people are buying such a performance. I also don't believe that people are buying Pelosi's little kente-cloth, "take a knee in solidarity with Black Lives Matter" trick either...."

"Paid leave should be a national right, rather than a patchwork option limited to those whose employers have policies in place, or those who live in one of the few states where a leave program exists"

"[She is] as effective as any legislative leader I’ve seen in managing a diverse and often contentious group of folks with a lot of different points of view.”"

"Influence and enemies go hand in hand. I learned this lesson explicitly from Nancy Pelosi, the first woman to become Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and someone I admire greatly. In the summer of 2019, she invited me on a congressional delegation to Ghana. During the flight, she told me about her journey: from her first campaign in 1987 when she was elected to Congress to becoming the highest-ranking female elected official in United States history, not once but twice. Then she turned the conversation to me. "It is really moving to see the number of people who come out to support you," she said. "Yes, but every time I'm attacked, the attack seems to be amplified by the support," I replied, confiding in her because it might make more sense to her than to most. "Sometimes I wish I could shoo them all away and take the beating myself so that I don't continue to feed the craziness." She sighed and looked at me with a maternal gaze, one that had a lot of knowledge behind it. Nancy is the kind of person who, by the time we landed, knew Ghana's economy down to the percentage change in its cocoa bean exports over the last year but who also put a blanket around me when I fell asleep in my seat. "The amount of money that is spent on ads and anything else to try to take me down is mind-boggling," she said. "The truth is, it is a badge of honor to have many people invested in one's failure. If they weren't this afraid of your power, they wouldn't work so hard to erode it." To hear that message from the powerful being she is meant more than words can express."

"In Munich this past weekend at the Security Conference the speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, nailed her anti-Chinese colours to the mast. Despite being a liberal on many issues and the leader of the fight to impeach President Donald Trump, she has joined forces with Trump in preaching that the West must not allow itself to be penetrated by Huawei’s 5G phone technology, (which is cheaper than any Western counterpart). But she appeared to have no response to a former Chinese ambassador to the UK who asked what was wrong with Huawei seeking Western markets when Microsoft, Google and Facebook were such big players in China. The Chinese government didn’t feel its security was threatened by them. He could also have added that if they do anything that the Chinese government doesn’t like China is always able to deal with it... China has not gone to war since 1979. It has not used lethal military force abroad since 1988 ... China does not fly through US airspace."

"The American people deserve to know the truth, that Nancy Pelosi bears responsibility as the Speaker of the House for the tragedy that occurred on January 6th And it was only after Republicans started asking these questions that she refused to seat them."

"("Do you think Nancy Pelosi should be House speaker?") Leader Pelosi is an incredible person and has done an incredible job. But at some point we have to make decisions on whether or not we want to be able to get someone there that can speak to the various challenges and issues of my families back home in the 13th Congressional District. They’re my priority. And right now the stance around Dodd-Frank, the stance around a number of issues are troubling for me. And so that’s why I have been very much saying that probably not. I haven’t spoken to Leader Pelosi. I don’t want to use this as, you know, giving you some general, generic response. I can tell you I most likely want to lean toward someone that will be more in line with the civil rights issues of my district."

"So Crazy Nancy Pelosi said horrible things about Dr. Deborah Birx, going after her because she was too positive on the very good job we are doing on combatting the China Virus, including Vaccines & Therapeutics. In order to counter Nancy, Deborah took the bait & hit us. Pathetic!"

"Nancy Pelosi is asking for $2.4 Trillion Dollars to bailout poorly run, high crime, Democrat States, money that is in no way related to COVID-19. We made a very generous offer of $1.6 Trillion Dollars and, as usual, she is not negotiating in good faith. I am rejecting their request, and looking to the future of our Country,"

"If you had the opportunity to save a million people from preventable death, would you do it? … This is not merely a rhetorical question, but one that members of the Congress will have to answer in the present… Right now, legislation has already passed the House of Representatives that would do just that. And it was included in the newly released COVID relief bill that is being negotiated between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. It would require the Treasury Department, which represents our government at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to support a multi-trillion dollar relief package from the Fund... And they do not cost the U.S. government anything at all — not now, and not at any time in the future. The IMF leadership, and almost all of the 189 member countries — including U.S. allies such as Germany and Canada — are ready to allocate the aid that Congress is considering... It would take almost no effort to include the House or Senate bill that would unblock Treasury’s hold on the IMF funding…"

"A woman is like a teabag. You can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water."

"Are you serious? Are you serious?"

"Am I going to have to use my ‘Mother of Five Voice’ to be heard?" (to an inattentive audience while campaigning)-Quoted in the October 23, 2006 issue of Newsweek"

"Democrats are not about getting even. Democrats are about helping the American people get ahead, and that’s what our agenda is about. So while some people are excited about prospects that they have in terms of their priorities, they are not our priorities. I have said, and I say again, that impeachment is off the table"

"The word 'campaign' is a war term. So when you go into a campaign you just prepare to go to war. If you think this is an exercise in civic activity...then you are going to be surprised.-1985"

"Why should we put a plan out? Our plan is to stop him. He must be stopped."

"[T]hey had to make up that story about weapons of mass destruction. Because that was the only thing that would sell to the American people, and that wasn't true."

"I have said it before and I will say it again: Impeachment is off the table."

"As many of you know, I come from San Francisco. We don't have a lot of farms there. Well, we do have one—it's a mushroom farm, so you know what that means."

"The American people voted to restore integrity and honesty in Washington, D.C., and the Democrats intend to lead the most honest, most open and most ethical Congress in history."

"Maybe it will take a woman to clean up the House."

"I say to my colleagues never confine your best work, your hopes, your dreams, the aspiration of the American people to what will be signed by George W. Bush because that is too limiting a factor."

"Members of Congress I have the high privilege and distinct honour of presenting to you, his excellency Bertie Ahern (/ei/hern), the Taoiseach, the Prime Minister of Ireland."

"By making college more affordable for all and more accessible for minority students, the first new higher education authorizing legislation in a decade will help strengthen our nation and America's middle class, and spur a new age of innovation and ingenuity in our country."

"Your recent meetings with Chinese dissidents at the White House are to be commended. However, your participation at the opening ceremony of the Olympics will send a signal to the Chinese people and the international community that could be misperceived as your approval, and that of the American people, for the draconian policies of the Chinese government. Therefore, it is essential that you unambiguously speak out for human rights and meet with the families of jailed prisoners of conscience while you are in Beijing. (In a letter to President Bush prior to his 2008 trip to Beijing's Summer Olympic Games"

""Can we drill your brains?"(responding to attendants who interrupted her speech by chanting "Drill here! Drill now!")"