Pelosi Facing Dissent in Party

WASHINGTON—Swing-district Democrats, fighting for their political lives, are beginning to turn on Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.), one of the most powerful House speakers in decades but also one of the most polarizing figures in U.S. politics.

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United Press International

Nancy Pelosi has granted candidates permission to say or do what they need to about her to survive what could be a Republican tidal wave.

 

In recent days, a Democratic congressman from Mississippi, Gene Taylor, signed a Republican petition for a vote to repeal the health-care law she championed. A half-dozen Democratic candidates have aired advertisements seeking to draw distance from the speaker, including one released Friday by long-time Rep. Chet Edwards of Texas.

The ferment among moderate to conservative Democrats shows that Ms. Pelosi, more than President Barack Obama, has become a target of voter anger in the 2010 campaign, the face of a party that passed a health-care bill into law and navigated controversial climate-change legislation through the House. It is also an indication that Ms. Pelosi and her liberal colleagues in the House leadership will face a feistier party when they return next year, even if they hold the majority.
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