CD-12: Pelosi's Coronation

House Minority Leader
Nancy Pelosi

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has a 100% liberal rating with the ACLU.

Does she have this stance out of principle?

Not at all.

Check out the demographics on her Congressional district:

Voters rejected Prop 8 by 70%, the widest margin in the state.

Statewide Democratic candidates take in 70% of the vote as well.

When she first won the San Francisco seat in 1987, she was less progressive than one of her Democratic challengers.

Now that she safely reigns as the Queen of Haight-Ashbury, she can aggressively tilt, lean (or fall all over herself) to the Left.

San Francisco -- Safely, Royally Democratic

San Francisco is so liberal, that not even Republican Ronald Reagan won this district, even in 1984, when he swept every state in the union (except Minnesota).

To put it bluntly, San Francisco is a Democratic coronation all of its own.

One a Democrat, or any liberal politician, wins this seat, they don't have to bother campaigning.

Even when anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan challenged Pelosi in 2008, the then-Speaker of the House won more than 70% of the vote. Running to the left of Pelosi still leaves a candidate well-behind.

Many Republicans have left nothing, not even their hearts, in San Francisco.

Except for one: John Dennis.

This man's inspiring yet quixotic efforts earned the attention of the New York Times.

Why would this guy put himself into this certain-to-lose situation?

John Dennis (on the right, fittingly enough)

By the way, Dennis has run against Pelosi twice before.

Dennis the Menace? Not really. In both prior contests, Dennis netted 15% of the vote. Ouch!

The New York Times article from 2010 represented the fanfare this candidate received:

John Dennis, a candidate for California’s Eighth Congressional District, recently stood in a gay bar in the Castro district of San Francisco and came out of the closet — ever so slowly — to a table of six older gay men.

                          

“O.K., we’re all sitting here, we all have a drink here?” Mr. Dennis said, taking a deep breath. “O.K.: I’m a Republican.”

A sense of humor pervades the article, an inevitability since any chance of removing Pelosi is laughable at best, and tragi-comic at worst.

Even though he has a better chance of winning the lottery, Dennis still rakes in the money.

His platform is strongly Libertarian, especially in his outrage at NSA spying on individual Americans.

What about his chances in 2014, with voter outrage against Democrats in general this year?

In the June 3rd, 2014 primary Pelosi netted 74% of the vote, with Dennis taking in the number two spot with 12%.

Pelosi will be crowned the Queen of the City once again. No wonder she seeks and retains the Democratic leadership in Washington year after year.