House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday told PBS's Charlie Rose, "I believe that it would be very difficult for the Republicans to take over the House...I would rather be in our position right now than theirs."
So absurd were these comments that New York magazine posted a brief piece at its Daily Intel blog with the headline "Denial Is Just a River in Egypt to Nancy Pelosi" (partial video of Pelosi's moronic exchange with Rose follows with transcript and commentary):
CHARLIE ROSE: If I talk to you six months from now will I be talking to the speaker of the House or just a representative from California?
NANCY PELOSI: Well, let me say being a representative from California is the greatest honor. To walk the floor of the House, to be chosen by your constituents to represent them is the highest honor. To be speaker is a great privilege. However, I have every anticipation that we will come together in this -- a similar form as we are now with me as speaker of the House.
CHARLIE ROSE: Why do you believe that when the numbers look -- I mean, 95 House races are in play, they say.
NANCY PELOSI: Well, who are "they"?
(LAUGHTER)
CHARLIE ROSE: Tell me how your numbers are. That would be what I would like to hear.
NANCY PELOSI: Well, let me say why I believe that it would be very difficult for the Republicans to take over the House of Representatives. Let me tell you right here and now that I would rather be in our position right now than theirs.
In order for them to win, they have to win around 38 seats and we’ll win some, so they have to win into the 40s. Our members are battle ready. They’ve been -- many of them have won two elections that were very tough elections. They’ve won in very difficult districts in terms of Democratic numbers. And they know how to win those elections and communicate with their voters, a. B, when we were full bore in 2006, the war in Iraq, the unpopularity of the president the president was in the 30s, President Bush, with all of that going for us, with great candidates and the rest, we won 30 seats. For them to win maybe 15 more seats than is a very tall order.
CHARLIE ROSE: So how do you characterize all those polls that say the Republicans are doing so well, including 40 or 40-plus seats that they will win?
NANCY PELOSI: From our standpoint, the national generic poll is interesting. And the one that came out today had us behind among likely voters but ahead among registered voters. So that means we have to change that reality and have it all about turnout. It’s all about who votes.
And so when we see the individual polls district by district, they’re very close but they’re very promising for us.
CHARLIE ROSE: Turnout is also about energy, who has the energy in this campaign.
NANCY PELOSI: Well, you know it’s interesting, because they talk about the enthusiasm gap.
CHARLIE ROSE: Right.
NANCY PELOSI: That momentum is changing among base Democrats and even some of the issues that appeal to the incumbents in terms of sending our jobs overseas and getting a tax credit to do it, privatizing Social Security and cutting Medicaid. Those issues are important to women, important to independents, and important to our base vote. So they play across the board.
But it is -- the turnout is all about the issues. Our people understand what the choice is. The president has said it very clearly. We’re moving America forward, we’re not going back. We’re fighting for the mile-class. As I said, we’re preserving Social Security not privatizing it. We’re protecting Medicare not cutting it and making it a voucher.
We’re making it in America. That’s our overriding theme -- making in the America to support our manufacturing base but also to enable people to make it in America, again, instead of sending your job overseas and getting a tax credit to do it.
So, again, for these reasons the choice is a clear one between us and the more people know about that the more the momentum swings to us. And our members are the best communicators in their districts to have an exchange of ideas with their constituent. We feel good about it.
If we've finally gotten to the point that even the liberal New York magazine doesn't believe Pelosi's delusions, maybe there really is hope for this country.
