Pelosi strides into Wednesday’s House Democratic Caucus elections with her head held high, and her high heels on [Seth] Moulton’s neck. She remains without a Democratic challenger. She has unleashed a wave of support from the Democratic faithful, from Barack Obama on down. She turned two of Moulton’s allies who had, just days before, stated their opposition to her. A third opponent suggested he’ll vote for Pelosi on the floor if no other Democratic option emerges. And she has kept several other Serve America PAC alumni from jumping aboard Moulton’s rickety bandwagon. While Pelosi isn’t completely in the clear for the final vote on January 3 on the House floor—with Moulton clinging to 14 fellow holdouts and eight other Democrats in the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus playing hard to get—she unquestionably holds the whip hand.
Dumping a historic figure like Pelosi, the first female speaker, after she weathered a Republican blitzkrieg to help her party win back the House, was always going to be a tall order. (And don’t say I didn’t warn them!) But Moulton’s operation has been, to borrow some military jargon, FUBAR. He’s poised to not only lose his battle with the party establishment, but to lose in such humiliating fashion that it could ruin his reputation and douse whatever presidential fires may be burning in his belly.
Just how did he botch this so badly? Let us count the ways…