By Scott Tibbs, May 18, 2012
On May 7, Joe Donnelly said this about Nancy Pelosi's upcoming trip to Indiana for a fundraiser: "I did not vote for her for Speaker."
Actually, that's not true. Donnelly voted for Pelosi in 2007, and Donnelly also voted for Pelosi in 2009.
So what is he basing this claim on? After he barely won re-election to his seat in Congress with a plurality, Donnelly voted against Pelosi's bid for a third term. Donnelly was clearly shaken by his near-defeat, and needed to distance himself from the far-left leadership of Pelosi and Barack Obama. Voting for Pelosi was never a problem when Donnelly thought he was safe, but when a majority of voters chose someone else (with a Libertarian getting just enough to be a spoiler) he knew he had to change course.
This is political gamesmanship at its worst, and indicates a character flaw. For Donnelly, loyalty to his leadership is a distant second to his own political career. If Donnelly is willing to toss Pelosi aside, can Hoosiers really trust him to defend the conservative values he claims to hold if we promote him to the U.S. Senate? Of course not. Donnelly is a typical Washington politician, interested in his own career above anything else.
We do not need someone like Donnelly in the U.S. Senate. We cannot trust that he will not embrace Obama and Harry Reid if he is elected this November. Hoosiers should retire Donnelly by denying him the promotion he desperately wants.
