Rep. Ben Ray Luján’s (D-NM) decision to run for Senate leaves Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) an easier way to jockey for position when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) chooses to step down.
According to a Wednesday Politico report, Luján, Jeffries and Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) are expected to eventually replace Pelosi, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC) as the next generation of House leadership.
That being said, Pelosi is the only one of the House Holy Trinity who committed to stepping down after a four-year term: Hoyer and Clyburn made no such promises, and may prove formidable obstacles to Jeffries’ rise, should one of them develop a yen for the gavel.
A “Yen” For the Gavel? Not sure the exchange rate, but that seems pretty inexpensive.
I like Jeffries so I hope her gets the next Speakership
As much as I like and respect Luján, his senate bid worries me with Mark Kelly in the race. He’d be great running statewide in California, but Arizona isn’t California. Sinema ran an AGGRESSIVELY centrist campaign and managed to win by a couple points, in a very democratic friendly year. She won thanks to people who voted for a conservative Governor and then crossed over to check her name despite their usual party affiliations or leanings. This is a race we need to win if we want any hope of taking the senate, a close hard fought primary with a race to the left doesn’t seem like the greatest strategy in arizona. Lets do what we did to win Sinemas seat in the first place; recognize that the state isn’t California or New York and don’t get bogged down in a costly primary where we waste resources and the candidates feel the need to move far to the left to win… we are setting ourselves up to be in the opposite scenario we found ourselves in in 2018, where McSally was forced to move far to the hard right in a primary, really hurting her chances in the general election while Sinema was able to save her money and spend it early, making sure she was the one defining herself to the electorate before the GOP had a chance to.
What are you talking about? Lujan is running in New Mexico, Kelly in Arizona.
Hoyer is 79. Clyburn is 78.
Even Prince Charles is only 70.