Dignity and Defiance

was also Steady Hoyer. Nancy Pelosi has been a complicated character, I think in political circles in political history, she has been lambasted on the right. Literal targets were placed on her, and she took every hit that the Republican Party tried to wail against her, not only in stride, but with a level of dignity and defiance and courage and style

that I think that no speaker has ever shown. Now I have throughout my time on woke AF, I have both applauded Nancy Pelosi for ushering through things like the Affordable Care Act, for ushering through and leading Barack Obama's many accomplishments. I have also been angry at Nancy Pelosi for not providing cover to the younger members of the Democratic Caucus and seemingly creating friction between middle of the

road Democrats and the newer, younger, browner, progressive set. However, I have always revered Nancy Pelosi as a woman who entered into Congress at the age of forty seven years old and at a time when there were only nine women in Congress. Can you imagine as she was giving her speech last week, she said that when she entered, there were nine, and now she's leaving and there are ninety.

To say that Nancy Pelosi has been a role model for women in politics, for people in politics in general, would be to just signal out in such a way how this woman singlehandedly reshaped the Democratic Party and the House and what it means to be speaker. I want to read you a little bit of what was written in the Washington Post last week about Nancy Pelosi because I think it's worth the reflection. I think that her

tenure is worth the reflection, and particularly now. I also want to say that we are in perilous times in this country. We can applaud what happened during mid terms, We can pack ourselves on the back. We can definitely pat young people on the back for showing up in

historic numbers. But the only reason why Nancy Pelosi doesn't have the gabble this time around is because of jerrymandering, vote of suppression and the ways in which the Republican Party has rigged the game right against the American people.

But I think that it bears reflection on someone who has redefined history and leadership and speakership as the Republican Party has redefined itself as a white supremacist, violent cult, and that many are wondering whether or not Nancy Pelosi would have sought democratic leadership if not for the violent attack against her husband. But I think that in her speech, what she signifies is that the time has come, you know,

for new leadership. We are in a new time, right, and while the sun may be setting on politics that once was, I think that many will have learned from her ability to navigate one of the most disturbing political times in our history, which was the presidency of Donald Trump, and she navigated it with the type of dignity and grace that we can all just pray for. But let me read you a little bit from the Washington Post. Pelosi stepping down as top House Democrat after two decades

in leadership, written by Marianna Satomayor and Paul Kane. How Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who broke Congress's glass ceiling as the first woman to hold the top position in the House, announced Thursday she will not seek reelection as the House Democratic Caucus's top leader, ending one of the most consequential leadership tenures in American political history. This is a direct quote from Nancy Pelosi for me, the hours come for a new generation to lead the Democratic Caucus that I

so deeply respect. Her decision to not seek reelection as a top Democrat in Congress's lower chamber marks the culmination of a political career widely seen as setting the standard for wielding political power. Historians largely agree that Pelosi redefined the speakership, and she made history climbing the ranks of Democratic leadership, becoming the first woman to be second in line to the presidency as Speaker of the House twice.

In her more than three decades serving in the House, Pelosi earned a reputation for amassing power in the face of male colleagues who at times undermined her opinions, and she earned respect by delivering votes on her party's top priorities, even if that meant twisting the arms of her colleagues to take a bill over the finish line. Pelosi's ability to keep her caucus in line has led to bipartisan recognition that she alone may be capable of wrangling Democrats'

disparate factions. She led the House Democratic Caucus through a bitter fight in twenty ten to pass the Affordable Care Act, and most recently managed to raise her thin majority in passing several key pieces of President Biden's legislative agenda. The White House said in a statement that Biden spoke with Pelosi on Thursday morning and congratulated her on her historic tenure.

President Biden said this history will note she is the most consequential Speaker of the House of Representatives in our history. There are countless examples of how she embodies the obligation of elected officials to uphold their oath to God and country, to ensure our democracy delivers and remains a beacon to the world. Pelosi's decision to step back has been seen

somewhat expected. She said in twenty twenty that she would not seek reelection to a leadership position, but she revealed little about her intentions outside a small and extremely loyal circle of trusted confidants, and her plans were never fully clear. Her choice to step back from leadership comes weeks after her husband, Paul Pelosi, was violently attacked in their San Francisco home by an intruder who was searching for the speaker.

The attack on her husband and her husband played a major role as she deliberated on her decision, Pelosi said during a recent television interview. She noted in the interview that she felt guilt about the violent attack as the intruder was looking for her. In her speech last Thursday, she thanked her husband, calling him my pillar of support, and said she was grateful for all of the prayers and well wishes he continues as he continues his recovery.

She said this, I'm endlessly grateful for all of life's blessings, for my Democratic colleagues, whose courage and commitment, with the support of your families, have made many of these accomplishments possible. Shortly after her announcement, it became clear that a new generation of Democrats was stepping in to take the torch. Representative came Jeffries, the current chairman of the House Democratic Caucus,

will run for House Minority Leader. According to two people familiar with the decision, Jeffries will be joined by Representatives Catherine m clark and Pete Aguilar, who will seek the number two and number three positions, respectively. Representative Jim Clyburne will stay on as Assistant Leader, a position that used to be third in line but will now be fourth in the leadership structure. Pelosi's top deputy, Representative Steenny Hoyer, said in a statement he also would not seek reelection

in leadership. You know, folks, I share that with all of you, because oftentimes, as we are looking forward to what's next, what we're anticipating, how we're moving, we don't take time to reflect on how far we have come and to think about a House of Representatives that looks more like the country. Because of people like Nancy Pelosi. I think that women in power have taken a lot

of cues from her. I think that her ability to navigate patriarchy misogyny at the highest ranks of government and do so with her smile and her cunning and her thoughtfulness is amazing. You know, we don't really think about the ways in which women are challenged consistently by men, are undermined by men, are put to the side by men, whether or not they're from your same party or not.

And Nancy Pelosi's ability to navigate the House of Representatives at a time folks when women had to wear a dresser skirt on the floor it was part of the rules. Weren't allowed to wear pants at a time when you would look around and there were only eight other women in the room. But make clear that you know what you're doing, that you're going to own the space and

the skin that you're in. And I think that there are so many profound lessons in that, in her achievements, in her steadfastness, that we can take as the baton is passed and as we look forward to what the

future brings. Now we know by the press conference, and I say that with fucking air quotes that Republicans gave with regard to who is going to be in charge of their oversight committee, that Republicans, when they assume the gavel in January, have absolutely no intention on doing a goddamn thing for the American people except wasting our time and our tax dollars with frivolous, fucking committee hearings and investigations that are political witch hunts in order to get

back at Democrats for having the audacity to hold their twice impeach criminal ass, fucking grifting ass deity Donald Trump accountable for his crimes against this country. You're going to hear more about Hunter Biden's laptop and hear more about the ways in which they're going to try and impeach members of a Biden's cabinet than you will about anything that they're actually willing to do, any legislation that they're willing to put together that would advance the American people.

Now folks can say, well, you know, they did win the House, while like I said earlier, the only and why Republicans have the gavel at a very slim fucking margin is because of all of the gerrymandering and voter suppression that their party has been at the forefront of

four decades. You have congressional districts that look more like you know, contortionists from cerftus Olay than they do actual landmasses carving their way to make sure that they have the Republican votes that only a Republican could possibly win in these very narrow, carved out, curved districts, because if Republicans actually had to compete in a real way, what

the fuck do they offer? Not a goddamn thing they don't offer the American people away forward, as they were rolling out what was top on their agenda, Nowhere was inflation. Nowhere was an economic plan right nowhere was a policy put together around making sure that America is prepared for

a potential new pandemic. No, everything that Republicans offer is about taking something away from the American people, whether that is Medicare, whether that is your right to vote, whether that is a full and complete education for your child who is attending a public school that now has over two thousand books banned. But the only way they win

is by cheating. And what I've loved about Nancy Pelosi over the course of her leadership is the ability to call out bullshit, the ability to take Donald Trump and Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell to fucking task, the ability to sit into a room or stand as one of my favorite photos of Nancy Pelosi standing up in a room with the cabinet members and Donald Trump and pointing

her finger across the table in his face. I want Democrats, as the leadership structure shifts and as we turn the page on this historic Pelosi error, to have the same grit and strategy and ability to communicate the absolute ridiculousness and frivolousness and white supremacists of this party to call a fucking spade a spade. Now. I don't think that Hakim Jeffries is going to have an uphill battle to

becoming minority leader in the House. I think that Hakim Jeffries has had some really great moments inside of the committees that he has led in questioning, in being you know, the head of the Democratic Caucus, and I think that he is ready. I think that he is ready to take on and call out this new I don't even

know what you call them breed. I guess this new breed of Republican that is centered and grounded in violence, in cruelty, and oppression and hate, you know, the role aside from blocking legislation, not like I think that they're going to try and pass any their role on these committees.

As we get prepared to enter into the circus of Ken McCarthy, if he's able to scrounge up the fucking votes to become you know, another sycophan for Donald Trump will be to communicate and to shut down Republican bias and lies at every turn. I mean, let me tell you something. I would not want to be in this body, in this Congress for so many reasons, because I think

that the Republican Party is a sheer embarrassment. And I don't want to go to work when I hate half the people that are there, right, like literally hate them. When I worked on the hill, When I worked on the Hill one hundred and fifty years ago, the climate was so different, right, Yes, we were in leadership, Democrats were in leadership, but the climate was still about collaboration, right, It was about bringing together these two vying ideologies, but

for the common good. But what we know and what we've learned over the last you know, seven god awful years, is that there is no longer any common good. But what I love about how Democrats are moving in this moment is that they're not going to let in fighting, jostling for power get in the way of what their common enemy is. And the common enemy is the Republican Party. The common enemy is fighting back fascism and authoritarianism and

the rise of domestic terrorism. Christopher Ray, the head of the FBI, was testifying, and I watched a brief clip and I, folks, I needed to change the channel because some you know, self care. But basically, Christopher Ray was alerting to Congress that the FBI needs to have the authority to be able to continue to take down drones that potentially are carrying home i eds, you know, the

explosives that are used at war. Because the threat and the rise of domestic terrorism, and let's just be clear and call it white terrorism, because that's what the fuck it is is so sky high that what they are hearing is chattering about being able to weaponize drones to cause mass destruction. As I'm listening to this, I'm like almost thirty years ago when Nancy Pelosi entered into the political arena, Domestic terrorism and threats of violence were not

the norm. The nuanced ways in which people were trying to harm government government officials was not the norm. And so it is necessary for those that have the stamina and the foresight to be able to see how this white supremacist political party is manipulating their base into terrorism.

Is needed. And you know why Christopher Ray was testifying is because there's going to be an expiration coming up soon of their authority to be able to disrupt drones to take them down, and he needed to amplify to Congress the threats right as we were headed into midterm elections, and obviously about a couple of weeks prior to that was the assault on Paul Pelosi from a white, white right wing fucking QAnon eating drink and sleeping intruder insurrectionist

who is hyped up on all the lies and hate being fed to him by the Republican Party. And so when we look at this raise or thin margin that Republicans are going to have, what we realize is that they're not going to provide the authority to the FBI to be able to dismantle what it is that their constituency and base is trying to do to destroy this country and to start a civil war. We're not safe, right, is the reality that I want folks to still sit with.

We have power, meaning that we still have the Senate, but the Senate map doesn't look good in a couple of years from now for us in terms of who is going to be up and where. But I'm not even concerned about that, because, folks, who the fuck knows where we will be? You know where this country will be. You have there twice impeach loser who still hasn't seen the inside of a jail cell, who still has not been indicted for all of his crimes, which there is

a laundry list of. So we don't know where things will fall. But what I do know is that I believe Democrats are more clear eyed and united against what they are fighting for. And it is for us. It is for freedom, It is for democracy, It is for family right, It is for the ability to love, to learn, right to live free of oppression, obstacles, do humanization, and cruelty.

So when Nancy Pelosi says, you know that this is the most beautiful building that she has ever served in, and that it means something to her to have walked these halls, to have led this party, I get choked up still. When I go to the capital, I am as a child of immigrants, queer black woman that walks those halls and holds meetings and speaks on panels about how to make this country better and having the awesome responsibility to use my voice to activate people into their

own personal power and lifting their own voices. So when I feel that bit of responsibility, I can't imagine the awesome responsibility that Nancy Pelosi has felt when she has placed her hand over her heart and pledged allegiance to this country and then saw that same beautiful building disgraced by an insurrectionist mob led by a vile, hateful, disgusting man who is yet to be held accountable for any

of his crimes. My favorite thing, you know, that I will hold about Nancy Pelosi is the footage that was released during the insurrection when she was just like I would like to punch him in the fucking face. I add the fucking part, I want to punch him in the face. I'm like, yes, we all do. I'd love it if we could take turns the way that he tried to punch a hole in the heart of our democracy.

But Americans continue to push back and to stand up and to stand strong and to fight for what matters, which is the freedom for all people to exist, to pursue their happiness, to pursue their version of the American dream. That is what Nancy Pelosi has stood for her entire career and we're all indebted and better off because of her leadership. So, Madam Speaker, we thank you on woke F for all you have done, for the ways in which you have challenged the system, challenged the status quo

in order to even make your speakership possible. That is it for me today, dear friends on woke F. As always, power to the people and to all the people. Power, get woke and stay woke as fuck.