Pelosi Backs Murtha

When Nancy Pelosi becomes Speaker of the House, Democrats will have to fill the position of majority leader. The complex contest pits Pennsylvania Democrat John Murtha, who has become one of the chamber's most outspoken advocates for getting U.S. troops out of Iraq, against Maryland Democrat Steny Hoyer, the current Democratic whip in the House and a much more cautious critic of the Bush administration's handling of the war.

Most House Democrats tend toward Murtha's position on the war. But, by and large, they tend to be more socially liberal than Murtha on issues such as abortion rights and gun control, a circumstance that has led some war foes -- including "Out of Iraq Caucus" founder Maxine Waters, D-California -- to back Hoyer.

How to sort the choice out? Pelosi wants to help. In a rare move for someone in her position -- earlier this year, House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Illois, sat out the contest to replace disgraced House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, after DeLay resigned -- the top Democrat has made an endorsement.

Despite previously expressing frustration with Murtha's decision to challenge Hoyer, Pelosi on Sunday weighed in for her longtime ally from Pennsylvania. Sending a signal that she thinks the Iraq debate is going to be central to the new Congress, Pelosi wrote Murtha an endorsement message that read: "I salute your courageous leadership that changed the national debate and helped make Iraq the central issue of this historic election. It was surely a dark day for the Bush Administration when you spoke truth to power. Your strong voice for national security, the war on terror and Iraq provides genuine leadership for our party, and I count on you to lead on these vital issues."

The letter was circulated late Sunday by Murtha's office. It had to sting Hoyer, who jousted with Pelosi in a previous leadership contest and who has generally been seen as the leader in this race.

The vote by the full House Democratic Caucus is expected to take place Thursday.

Comments (4)

1. Regarding Rio Bravo's post, irrelevant as it is to this thread: Lieberman has always been a Republican, i.e., willing to be bribed (insurance industry), hypocritical (calling himself a Liberal), and morally bankrupt (forever open to sending other peoples children to their deaths for a pack of lies). Take him, he's one of you.

   back to the subject at hand: Murtha seems to be the Dems' McCain. He smells good at first whiff, but upon further examination he uglies up the whole barnyard. On the other hand Hoyer's nose is up in the air, trying to determine how to be a leader by floating along on whatever current wind that happens to be wafting by, in other words, a typical Dem pol who stands for nothing. Score it even and hope a dark horse appears.

   Posted by bookmanjb1 at 11/13/2006 @ 08:10am

2. "How to sort the choice out?"

   Interesting turn of a phrase. Wasn't it Ari Berman at the end of last week who said Murtha, despite his "anti-war" bona fides...

   received something like a "zero" rating from NARAL...and an "A" from the NRA?!?!?

   (BLOG | Posted 11/10/2006 @ 4:14pm All About the War? --Ari Berman)

   Posted by Mask at 11/13/2006 @ 09:26am

3. John Mutha deserves this position. He took all the hits by the right wing and the media for opposing the present course in Iraq. Other democrats went around the country endlessly quoting Murtha when they simulaneously criicized the Bush administration. Without Murtha's criticism of the Iraq War and leader Pelosi's bringing back discipline in the House, the democrats would still be the minority party.

   Other democrats in the Congress need to realize this fact--Without Pelosi's vision and Murtha's unpopular criticism of the Bush administration on the war in Iraq the Republicans would still hold the majority.

   People like Hoyer like to play it safe and would never confront the Bush administration head on. I am sure most of the DLC Democrats will be supporting Steny Hoyer. Hoyer supported the corporations backed Bankruptcy Bill which the Bush administration pushed and this bill harms those in the middle class. Hoyer is simply an accomodationist to the Bush administration in the same way Joe Lieberman is in the Senate. I will leave the democratic party if Murtha does not beat the pro-Bush democrat named Steny Hoyer who lacks real leadership qualities and appears to be one of those "see where the wind is blowing today types."

   Posted by mercurysun1 at 11/15/2006 @ 10:16am

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   Posted by europa at 11/17/2006 @ 01:44am