Appearing on PBS NewsHour, New York Times writer David Brooks said that the loss in for the GA-6 Special Election was a major loss for the Democratic Party and that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is a liability for her party.
Brooks stated, “I think the Georgia loss is a big loss. I don’t think it’s, oh, this is always a Republican district, it’s not such a big deal. If the Democrats are going to pick up seats, it’s going to be in upscale, highly educated suburban seats. And this was tailor-made for that, a seat that Trump barely won. And so, if after all that’s happened in the last four or five months, they can’t pick up the seat, that, to me, is an indictment.”
Brooks added, “It’s first, a sign that there’s limits to being anti-Trump. Second, that the Trump phenomenon was not just a fluke, that it’s based on some deep structural things in the economy that are driving people to support the Republicans, some deep structural things in the country, that people are extremely distrustful of government and extremely distrustful of Washington.”
He continued, “There’s also a sign that the Republicans, despite all that’s happened, are still considered the party of change. And if they want change, they’re still likely to go to the Republicans.”
Then the discussion turned to Nancy Pelosi with Brooks stating, “I do think, on net, Nancy Pelosi can be a very masterful leader — again, inside, but I do think she’s become a central liability for people around the country. Now, the question will be, OK, if they got rid of Nancy Pelosi as party leader, would the next person be just as unpopular? And, potentially, but I think potentially not. And I do think, if you’re a Democrat, you do have to think about, who is currently the face of our party?”