"When Rep. Nancy Pelosi first became speaker of the House, I got a call from a reporter from a DC paper; I think it was Roll Call. He wanted to know what someone from a liberal San Francisco publication thought of the new speaker's "San Francisco values." Right-wing politicians and pundits around the country were going crazy. Some progressives were overly excited. A speaker from (gasp?) San Francisco, that crazy left-wing city? She must be some kind of political freak, maybe even a commie."
"I told the reporter the everyone on all sides needed to chill out. Pelosi was by no means a "San Francisco leftist." She was a very mainstream Democrat who hadn't represented San Francisco in years; her constituency was the leadership and members of the Democratic Caucus in the House. She was all about raising money from rich people to elect Democrats, even right-wing Democrats, to keep her party and herself in power."
"When Pelosi ran for Congress, she had no local political experience except raising money for the Democratic Party. She was handpicked by the old Burton Machine to make sure that Sup. Harry Britt didn't become the first gay Democratic Socialist to represent San Francisco in the House. Also: Harry was independent of the Machine, and not prone to cozying up to rich people. He almost won."
A reporter queried a liberal San Francisco publication about Nancy Pelosi's "San Francisco values" after she became Speaker. Right-wing pundits reacted strongly while some progressives celebrated. The publication insisted Pelosi was not a San Francisco leftist but a mainstream Democrat focused on fundraising and party leadership rather than local progressive politics. The Burton Machine handpicked Pelosi over Harry Britt to secure a more conventional candidate. Pelosi helped the party retain House control, supported the Ryan White Act and the Affordable Care Act, and never pursued a single-payer Medicare-for-all system.
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