Monday, January 22, 2007

Umm..about Pelosi being ruined...

As was pointed out by a more astute blogger than myself. About two months ago, the mainstream press was declaring that Nancy Pelosi was ruined as speaker. The consensus was that she should just pack it up and head off to her little pot & sodomy farm in San Francisco. She was DONE. Stick a fork in her, D-O-N-E. Nobody was going to listen to her and the House Dems were in open rebellion.

Well...just two weeks into her term as speaker. We find out that she kicked a little butt.
Sworn in just over two weeks ago as the first female speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi wasted no time showing who's boss.

The California Democrat rammed six major bills through the House at breakneck speed, stomped out smoking privileges near the House floor, partially sidelined a powerful Democratic committee chairman and decided she liked traditionally Republican office space so much she claimed it for herself.

By Democrats' timekeeping, she did it all in far under the 100 legislative hours she had allotted.

"We did what we promised the American people we would," Pelosi declared on Friday, pledging it was "just the beginning."

Pelosi's initial agenda, completed Thursday, included measures with wide popular support: increasing the minimum wage, broadening stem cell research, allowing government bargaining on Medicare drug prices, cutting student loan costs, putting in place terrorism-fighting recommendations from the Sept. 11 commission and rolling back energy company tax breaks.

Each bill passed with bipartisan majorities and Pelosi triumphantly gaveled down the votes, at one point banging the gavel so enthusiastically that it left a small dent in the podium.

And the American people? They kind of like that San Francisco liberal a hell of a lot more than that Texan 'cowboy':

Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling his job as president?

Approve 33
Disapprove 65

Do you approve or disapprove of the way Nancy Pelosi is handling her job as speaker of the House?

Approve 54
Disapprove 25

The pollsters helpfully compare the failed Pelosi speakership with Newt Gingrich's successful kick-ass revolutionary one (approve/disapprove):

12/20/94 (as incoming speakers): 35/43
1/4/95: 35/37
1/29/95: 40/48
3/5/95: 38/51

The Washington press corps must be pretty pissed that Pelosi is ruining their preordained story. Maybe they can write some more stories about her choice in outfits.

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