A group of Democratic Congressmen have recently been vocal in their criticism of Nancy Pelosi and House Democratic leadership. The Blue Dog Democrats, a coalition whose numbers have plummeted to unprecedented lows in the last decade, are unapologetic in their criticism of Democratic leaders and the destructive path on which the Democratic Party is headed.
Roll Call: “After 20 years, the Blue Dogs insist their mission is the same — they’re just trying to save the Democratic Party from itself.”
Blue Dog Coalition Chairman Kurt Schrader (D-OR):
“You can’t continue to ignore big chunks of the American voter because you have certain ideological ideas.”
Schrader said he has even told Democratic leaders that he would encourage his coalition members to vote against the Democratic agenda to show his frustration:
“I’m going to encourage my members, unless I see some changes in the Democrat message, to vote against Democrats as often as we can to show not all Democrats are one big monolithic group.”
One Southern Democrat, Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN), noted the fear that many Members of Congress have of their leadership:
“Committee assignments, permissions to do lots of things that are in the discretion of party leadership… fundraising ability, lots of things are withheld from members who are not perfectly loyal.”