Pelosi handed major defeat by rising progressive Democrat stars, as Biden agenda put on ice
“You have these big showdowns, you have these self-imposed deadlines. And then no matter what happens you get a greater understanding heading out of those deadlines of where you stand,” R Street Institute resident senior fellow for governance James Wallner told Fox News. “Members start to moderate their positions a little … and that’s going to continue to happen and at a certain point … Schumer’s gonna put legislation on the floor and he’s gonna basically dare Manchin and Sinema to oppose this bill.”
“I wouldn’t say Pelosi lost, per se. If you think back to Paul Ryan and John Boehner and how they managed the House, and they would lose votes on the floor. And what Pelosi did was pull a bill or not have a vote on the bill because she’s going to lose. So she’s preserving the option to win in the future,” Wallner said. “It does, I think, signify that the progressives recognize their leverage and they recognize that if they don’t use their leverage, if they don’t actually maintain their credibility, that they’re gonna get rolled.”
Indeed, Wallner said, last week was a watershed moment for progressives in the House Democratic Caucus.
“It’s not a question of who’s on top. I mean, you could have a situation where the establishment maintains control of the House Democratic Party but because the progressives are emboldened, because they feel stronger, they can make the House operate differently,” he said.
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