Nancy Pelosi downplays impeachment talk after Michael Cohen's testimony

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants to 'see what the facts are' following the testimony of President Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen; reaction from Fox News contributor Kimberly Strassel, editorial board member for the Wall Street Journal.


See also: Democrats ‘defections’ are already frustrating the heck out of Speaker Pelosi and newcomer @AOC 

Republicans have already been able to make minor changes to Democrat legislation in the House thanks to scores of ‘moderate’ Democrat defections. And this is frustrating the heck out of Speaker Pelosi, as well as hard-left types like AOC who hate ICE.

See Also: Here are the Republican Senators who will vote AGAINST Trump’s National Emergency

Yesterday the House voted on a gun bill that, of course, expands federal background checks. It passed, of course, 240-190.

But before it was up for a final vote, Republicans used their minority power to enact a procedural move known as a motion to recommit. According to Roll Call:

A motion to recommit, or MTR, is one of the few procedural tools the minority party has to get its message across. While the procedure can be used in a way that actually makes substantive changes to legislation, most often the minority’s goal is to send a political message, not improve the bill.

This specific MTR was to amend the legislation so that ICE would be notified if an illegal wanted to purchase a gun. Republicans got enough Democrat votes to make it happen, according to the NY Post:

But 26 moderate Democrats sided with Republicans in amending the bill to include a provision that requires a notification to ICE if an illegal immigrant wants to purchase a firearm, the Washington Post reported.

This frustrated Pelosi, according to Roll Call:

Speaker Nancy Pelosi, known for her ability to keep her caucus together, is frustrated that her party is allowing Republicans to leverage the procedural tool as a political weapon.

“To those who think that they have to go down a certain path, understand the pressure you are putting on your colleagues,” Pelosi told Democrats during the caucus’s weekly whip meeting Thursday, according to a source in the room. “So, we are either a team or we’re not, and we have to make that decision.”

It also infuriated AOC, but perhaps for slightly different reasons.

See Also: Heartbreaking… This isn't in New York, this isn't in California, this happened just this week right here in Virginia.

As you all know AOC hates ICE, and she doesn’t like voting on legislation that supports ICE in any way. She’s now threatening to campaign against these ‘moderate’ Democrats who side with Republicans like this:

According to the Post:

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was among House Democrats who laced into moderates Thursday — threatening to run those who side with Republicans out of office in the 2020 primaries, according to a new report.

The hard-left freshman congresswoman led the charge in a closed-door session, saying some of her moderate colleagues are “putting themselves on a list,” her spokesman Corbin Trent told the Washington Post.

Ocasio-Cortez suggested she would help liberal activists to unseat moderates in the next election.

“She said that when activists ask her why she had to vote for a gun safety bill that also further empowers an agency that forcibly injects kids with psychotropic drugs, they’re going to want a list of names and she’s going to give it to them,” Trent said, referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

These moderate Democrats that are being “put on a list” are from right-leaning districts. They obviously didn’t go against the party on the final vote, but even this MTR procedure was enough to send some Democrats off the rails.

See Also: Beto O’Rourke saying "walls do not save lives. Walls end lives" because it forces people who are illegally crossing to go to more remote places on the border.

To that I say good job Republicans. These are the kinds of moves we like to see from a Republican minority party.

Give ’em hell.