Former Hillary Clinton Spokesman Praises Progressive Congresswomen Who Have Challenged Pelosi

Former Hillary Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon tweeted Sunday that the four of the more left-wing Democratic congresswomen who are often in open conflict with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “define the vision and moral center of today’s Democratic Party.”

The four House freshmen whom Pelosi dismisses in the Dowd column have done more to define the vision and moral center of today’s Democratic party than all of the message bills pushed by the party leadership combined.

— Brian Fallon (@brianefallon) July 7, 2019

Fallon was commenting on the ongoing conflict between Pelosi and the party’s more progressive faction. In a Saturday interview, New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd inquired about how California Democratic Rep. Pelosi felt about some of her own House members voting against the recently passed $4.5 billion emergency border funding bill. (RELATED: Ocasio-Cortez Visits Border Facility, Claims Migrant Women Were Forced To Drink Toilet Water)

“All these people have their public whatever and their Twitter world, but they didn’t have any following,” Pelosi told Dowd. “They’re four people and that’s how many votes they got.”

Both Pelosi and Fallon were referring to Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, who call themselves the party’s “progressive congresswomen.” The four issued a news release prior to the voting on the emergency funding that pledged “not one more dollar” for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) or Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agencies. (RELATED: ‘Schumer Destroyed All Our Leverage’: WaPo Report Reveals Infighting Between House And Senate Democrats On Border Bill)

“If the left doesn’t think I’m left enough, so be it,” Pelosi told Dowd. “As I say to these people, come to my basement. I have these signs about single-payer from 30 years ago. I understand what they’re saying. But we have a responsibility to get something done, which is different from advocacy. We have to have a solution, not just a Twitter fight.”

Ocasio-Cortez continued to confront her party leader on Sunday, suggesting Pelosi was out of touch with current political strategy while arguing that “public whatever” is “public sentiment.”

That public “whatever” is called public sentiment.

And wielding the power to shift it is how we actually achieve meaningful change in this country. https://t.co/u6JtgwwRsk

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 7, 2019

Pelosi has shepherded some progressive bills through the House with its current Democratic majority. She has championed legislation that would overturn the Hyde Amendment and has encouraged illegal immigrants to vote in elections wherever they can.