Pelosi signals she has votes for House speaker, pressures GOP on stimulus
In a news conference Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., signaled that she’s got the votes to retain the speaker’s gavel, predicting enough Democrats will turn out for her when the new Congress convenes Sunday.
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With just 222 Democrats eligible to be seated, she can only afford to lose five detractors, given a couple of vacancies and another race in New York where a winner has not yet been certified. That’s a heavy lift for Pelosi given there are still eight members in her caucus who opposed her in 2019, and two more who voted present in 2017.
Pelosi also dismissed news that Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., will object to the certification of the Electoral College votes next week.
“I have no doubt that on next Wednesday, a week from today, that Joe Biden will be confirmed by the acceptance of the vote of the Electoral College as the 46th president of the United States,” she said.
On the stimulus fight, Pelosi pressured Senate Republicans to act on behalf of struggling families.
"The Democrats and Republicans in the House have passed that legislation. Who is holding up that distribution to the American people? Mitch McConnell, and the Senate Republicans," Pelosi said. "In blocking it, they are in denial of the hardship that the American people are experiencing now -- health wise, financially, in every way, their lives and livelihood in many cases are on the brink."
"This $2,000 will go a long way, not only to sustain the financial security of America's working families but will help small business to thrive as well," she added.
-ABC News’ John Parkinson