Why The Republicans Hate (And Fear) Nancy Pelosi

Reprinted with permission from Shareblue.

Republicans are spending a lot of time attacking House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, and one reason for those attacks became clearer this week with the news that she has raised almost $91 million for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee since the beginning of the year.

According to internal documents obtained by CNN, Pelosi raised $83 million of that total by the end of June, which is almost quadruple the amount that Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) raised during the same period.

Ryan raised $11 million for the National Republican Congressional Committee in the first quarter of 2018 and less than $10 million for the second. And the $91 million Pelosi has raised through July is already more than double the amount Ryan raised for the entirety of last year.

Fundraising isn’t the only reason Republicans fear Nancy Pelosi. She has also proven to be a much more effective leader than Ryan, or any other House Republican in the last decade.

“They see me as a threat to their being handmaidens to the special interests in our country,” Pelosi said last week, in an interview with Shareblue.

Leader Pelosi has also become a symbol of the changes that Republican voters fear most: the progress that women, minorities, LGBTQ Americans and others have made, as well as the policy achievements of our first black president.

Republicans sum those fears up with the term “liberal,” and Leader Pelosi is the embodiment of those fears.

“They are so afraid of the women, and people of color, and LGBTQ increased numbers in the Congress because we have clarity in our message, and that is shared by the entire caucus,” Pelosi told Shareblue.

Meanwhile, Paul Ryan has become the embodiment of Republican cowardice in the face of Trump’s daily outrages, after a good long run as the embodiment of Republican ruthlessness against the sick, the elderly, and the poor.

Nancy Pelosi’s leadership and fundraising muscle may make her an attractive target for Republicans, but they also make her an invaluable asset to the creation of a blue wave in November.

Perhaps the media should stop going along with the attacks, and pay some attention to the far less accomplished Ryan.

Published with permission of The American Independent.