In a press release, Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA-8th) officially announced he was coming on board the Tim Ryan challenge to Nancy Pelosi’s leadership.
The Boston Democrat said Monday he respects Pelosi, but believes Democrats need to change direction and widen their focus to regain the trust of hard-working American families who are the party’s traditional base.
The former ironworker says he believes Ryan understands the plight of American workers and can help the party win back the support of what Lynch describes as “lunch bucket Democrats” who struggle to raise families but haven’t had a raise in a long time.
Lynch says Democrats are increasingly seen as a party of narrow interests backed by elites by ignoring the economic struggles of average Americans.
Lynch calls the recent election “an epic failure and another lost opportunity.”
I’ve had my disagreements with Lynch in the past over Iraq, ACA, choice, and LGBT rights. But he has really transformed himself since the loss to Ed Markey as a progressive on social and foreign policy while retaining an authenticity and consistency about labor, fair trade, and progressive economics. He ran against NAFTA long before Donald Trump did. Lynch grew up in a housing project and is a former labor organizer and iron worker, so he knows what it’s like to punch a clock that doesn’t have your name embossed on it. I still disagree with him from time to time, but I respect that he has always been his own man which allows him to take on long odd causes like this one.
Tim Ryan was a consistent critic of the Iraq Warthe and someone from humble origins having been raised by a single mother and going to state school on a football scholarship. His political mentor was Jim Traficant, the crazy and occasionally corrupt odd ball who used to say ‘beam me up’ on the floor of the House got his start as a sheriff who didn’t jail foreclosure victims and took their side. Ryan has followed in those populists footsteps consistently trying to keep and bring jobs to his district long hard hit by foreign trade, automation, and globalization.
This is the kind of district our party lost and needs to get back. And putting someone like Ryan in charge would be the fresh change we need from a party that only raises money from elites to a party that returns to grassroots organizing. He wants the DCCC to emulate Organizing for America, he wants to get the Sanders wing a leadership role in the House, and he refuses to waver on our historic commitment to equal justice for all-he just wants to emphasize the economic aspects of that mission just as much as the social aspects.
It’s time for a change. Our party can’t continue to languish in the minority and only represent the coasts. It’s time to make the Democratic Party democratic again, and this is a start. I will call my Congressmen Seth Moulton and urge him to join his colleague. I encourage you to do the same.
SomervilleTom says
Where are these two men today on:
– The ACA
– A woman’s right to choose
– Same-sex marriage
– LGBT rights
My representative is Mike Capuano. I’m pretty sure that Mr. Capuano has a firm grasp on economic issues. I think he’s got an even better grip on the question of who should be Minority Leader. If I called Mr. Capuano, it would be to ask him his opinion about the question, rather than tell him mine.
Just saying.
jconway says
Lynch now favors choice, marriage equality, and LGBT rights. He now says he favors single payer as an alternative to ACA, so he is arguably to the left on that issue (although his vote explanation at the time arguably was not).
Ryan has always been for gay rights and the ACA. He eloquently wrote about why he changed his mind on abortion, and he mentioned saving Planned Parenthood funding as one of his top priorities as Minority Leader.
Some more good quotes:
On Planned Parenthood:
On Trump Lying to Working Class Voters
On rejecting the false binary:
stomv says
I came on prepared to ask the question “are there any black or Latino lunch bucket Democrats, or is this another codeword for ‘white less-educated men’?”
Glad to see that Mr. Ryan thinks of “working class” as men and women, young and old, straight and gay, and all shades of skin tone.
jconway says
I would defect to his camp if he did. And he has taken on Pelosi in the past, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he joins this effort. But definitely call his office either way!
bob-gardner says
when we can re-arrange deck chairs?
jconway says
n/t
bob-gardner says
The only people that this matters to are are the two principals and maybe a few staffers. It’s irrelevant to all the real people and their real problems–the ones that everybody has been emoting about for the last few weeks.
And the (few) people who are affected by this don’t care whether someone on BMG supports someone who supports or doesn’t support Nancy Pelosi.
Christopher says
…in terms of which direction the party will take both in terms of issue priorities and degree of aggressiveness in being the opposition.
bob-gardner says
. . . then I would say that today’s win by Pelosi was a good result. Moulton, who many people on BMG had doubts about when he was first elected, and Lynch, who many have had their doubts about forever, are fine Congressmen; but I don’t want them to set the direction of the party.
doubleman says
Moulton added his support for Ryan today.
jconway says
I ended up calling to say thanks instead of asking him to consider.
Pablo says
Might be a bit of a knee-jerk reaction, but if Lynch and Moulton are for Ryan, after their dead-wrong DFER loving endorsement of Question 2, I am more drawn to Pelosi.
jconway says
Per the Columbus Dispatch
fredrichlariccia says
saying she welcomes a vigorous debate about Pelosi’s record : ” The strength of our Caucus is our diversity and I support Leader Pelosi because of her history of corralling votes amid tough debate.”
I’m proud to support both progressive Leader Nancy Pelosi and my friend and champion, Congresswoman Katherine Clark.
The secret ballot vote is scheduled for this morning at 9 am.
Fred Rich LaRiccia
doubleman says
The vote apparently was 134-63.
Christopher says
…but I think it would be politic, both inside and outside the House, for Pelosi to find a place in the leadership for Ryan.
jconway says
To those of us on be outside it may seem like a no brainer to change up the leadership to emphasize a different set of values and principles. But to the members they know they owe their re-elections to Pelosi who did fight for them and raise money for them and has held the caucus together. The fact that she did do a great job beating back Social Security privatization means she is battle tested for the Medicare showdown to come.
I do believe Ryan and the members that backed him like my Congressman Seth Moulton and others like Steve Lynch, Marcia Fudge and Beto O’Rourke shared their frustrations and made their stand known. They should be included in the leadership instead of banished to the basement.
fredrichlariccia says
she won 68 % of the 197 member Democratic Caucus to Tim Ryan’s 32 %.
I hope they can unite against Trumpism by defeating Republican Medicare and Obamacare privatization / voucher schemes.
Fred Rich LaRiccia
Peter Porcupine says
…she will be told that they have to pass the bill for her to find out what is in it.
JimC says
I’m glad she was challenged, and I think she should have stepped down ahead of the challenge, but I still like Pelosi. Off to war with the army we have.