Congress

House Leadership Battle: Congressman Seth Moulton Talks Anti-Pelosi Movement Ahead of Key Vote

The Massachusetts Democrat says he's willing to entertain the idea of brokering a deal with Nancy Pelosi but only if it's a 'real deal'

One of the leaders of the movement to keep Nancy Pelosi from the top House leadership position is a Massachusetts Congressmen. Seth Moulton strongly maintains that the Pelosi critics have the votes to oust her. But he is now sounding open to negotiation.

With the House leadership vote just two days away, the Democrat still sounds like a Congressman ready to do battle, but as one of the key leaders in the movement to prevent Pelosi from becoming House Speaker, Moulton is also signaling he is willing to negotiate.

“The numbers are there. Absolutely," Moulton said. "I mean she wouldn’t be concerned if we didn’t have the numbers."

Asked if he was willing to broker a deal with Pelosi, Moulton responded, “I’m willing to entertain that possibility, absolutely. I think that’s the right thing to do for the party. But she needs to understand that it has to be a real deal.

Moulton points to the crop of newly elected young Progressives saying they got elected by promising a shake up of the status quo.

But many of the newcomers are sticking with Pelosi, like Ayanna Pressley who says in a statement: "My support for Leader Pelosi’s bid for Speaker is motivated by her progressive track record and her express commitment to bring a background check bill to the floor as an early priority this Congress."

Congressman Joe Kennedy, a Pelosi supporter, says Democrats need someone who knows how to pass a legislative agenda and how to build consensus adding, “From an empowered progressive left to a whole lot more moderates that just got elected across the Midwest, across parts of rural America, that we should be really proud of but that we need to make sure their voices are elevated and heard.”

Moulton says, “The bottom line is that we are happy to have discussions but we’ve received no outreach.”

House Democrats are expected to vote Wednesday - that includes the newly-elected Democrats, not the Democrats who are leaving in January. The voting process could go into Thursday.

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