In a jarring development in Democrat Party politics, Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D) is signaling her belief that a change in leadership is desperately needed at the top – including the post currently occupied by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and that the new blood ought to come from parts of the country other than California and New York, as the Washington Examiner reports.
Slotkin's remarks came during an interview with CNN on Friday as polls increasingly suggest that her party faces long odds in terms of retaining its House majority after the November midterms.
Explaining her desire for a reshuffling at the highest echelons of the party, Slotkin declared, "I have always said, I think it's time we have new leadership," adding that she would like to see "some Midwesterners" among those elevated in the near future, noting that "[w]e have a lot of New York and California."
This is not the first instance in which Slotkin has attempted to distance herself from Pelosi, having withheld her vote during the speaker's last quest for the speaker's gavel back in 2021, as the Detroit Free Press noted at the time.
"It's important to me that I live up to the commitments I make to my district. And I've been pretty vocal about the need for more Midwestern leaders, people who represent areas like where I'm from," Slotkin said.
Perhaps in a nod to the sorts of concerns raised by Slotkin and others, Pelosi recently reversed course on the issue of lawmakers trading stocks while in office, making a change from her prior preference not to deprive anyone of the right to participate in the free economy.
Slotkin acknowledged Pelosi's change of heart, saying during the CNN interview, "I'm glad she's come around because I couldn't disagree more with her original statements on this. And I was surprised, I guess, when she came out that strongly in the beginning. We are in a moment in our history where we need to do everything possible to restore faith in our government."
Even if the Democrats manage to hold onto their House majority come November, it is far from clear what Pelosi would retain her perch atop the chamber, given an agreement she previously reached with a group of Democrats not to serve as speaker beyond this year – one by which she says she plans to abide.
Should Republicans secure the volume of midterm victories many are predicting and retake the House, Pelosi may have that eventuality covered as well, with rumors having emerged in recent weeks that she is lobbying President Joe Biden for the ambassadorship to Italy – a plumb role in which Slotkin would undoubtedly wish her well.
