GOP Trains Fire on Pelosi

House Republicans revolt, call for conference committee

(NEWSER) - House Republicans didn’t hold their expected vote on the Senate’s two-month payroll tax cut extension last night, a hairpin turn so abrupt that Politico ’s story on it is headlined, “Has John Boehner Lost Control?” The House had planned to vote down the Senate bill and push for a full-year extension, but members objected that doing so would compromise their pledge against voting for tax hikes. Instead, the House will hold a procedural vote this morning to send the matter into a conference committee with the Senate. More»

She'll be minority leader, he'll be speaker

(NEWSER) - Nancy Pelosi won the position of House minority leader today, but her uphill battle to retain a leadership role revealed a fierce split within the Democratic party, Politico reports. The vote (150-43) was far from unanimous, with the opposition holding Pelosi responsible for Democrats' crushing defeat in the midterms. "She is the face that defeated us in this last election," summed up Allen Boyd, a defeated Florida Democrat. On the other side of the aisle, Republicans, as expected, unanimously elected John Boehner to fill her role as House speaker. More details on that vote here . More»

EJ Dionne: She deserves to stay in a leadership position

(NEWSER) - EJ Dionne thinks Nancy Pelosi is "one of the most effective speakers in history," and he's got no problem with her keeping a leadership role. "Yes, there are valid political reasons for House Democrats to change leaders," he writes in the Washington Post . "But there's an argument rooted in justice that the person who built their majority should have a shot at winning it back. And aren't Democrats tired of reflexively capitulating to the other side's narrative?" More»

Perriello loses in Virginia, Grayson in Florida

(NEWSER) - Nancy Pelosi's reign as House speaker will soon be over. Republicans will easily take control of the House of Representatives by night's end, say both CNN and NBC . The GOP entered the evening needing to gain 39 seats, and they'll likely end up with about 60, a development that will make John Boehner the next speaker. An emotional Boehner (see here ) called the outcome a "repudiation of Washington" and later took a congratulatory phone call from President Obama. More»

Polling inaccuracies might surprise us today

(NEWSER) - We keep hearing doom and gloom for the Democrats, and there’s a good chance that’s accurate, writes Nate Silver in the New York Times . But thanks to a few potential polling flaws, things could turn out differently; the Dems might even hang onto the House. Here’s why:

1. Polls often skip cell-phone-only voters—Some 25% of adults don’t use landlines at all, and their demographics lean Democratic.