On Tuesday, MSNBC host Chris Matthews, speaking on Politico‘s “Off Message” podcast, promulgated an interesting rumor: that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) would pass her leadership post to Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA). Conversing with host Edward-Isaac Dovere, Matthews reported, “Somebody hit me with the rumor last night that Nancy Pelosi is going to turn it over to Joey the third. Have you heard that rumor?”
Dovere, Politico‘s chief Washington correspondent, answered that he was unaware of the rumor, but according to The Washington Free Beacon, did not appear surprised. Dovere said that Rep. Joe Crowley (D-NY) has been forthright about his ambitions to succeed Pelosi. Dovere said, “I mean Crowley is more open about wanting it, but there are a lot of Democrats in the House who talk about Kennedy.”
Dovere did admit Pelosi has been pushing Kennedy’s career; she selected him to respond to President Donald Trump’s 2018 State of the Union address, saying, “And she was very proud to point out that it was her idea completely to make him be the one to do the State of the Union response.”
In mid-April, Rep. Jim Clyburn, one of Pelosi’s top lieutenants, said that if the Democrats don’t win back the House in November the entire leadership should step down, asserting, “If we’re still in the minority” after Election Day, “all of us have got to go.”