I had already started reading Pelosi by Molly Ball when I heard on the news that Nancy Pelosi was retiring from her position as Speaker of the House after this term. She has been the only Speaker of the House since I became politically aware.
Since I'm a huge library fan, I was delighted to learn that Pelosi's first appointment was to the San Francisco Public Library Commission. She was appointed by Mayor Alioto.
Pelosi was accused of getting elected through her father's political machine. Her father was the Mayor of Baltimore. I can't see how her father could have had any influence in San Francisco. So I thought that was ridiculous. She's also been in Congress for 34 years. It seems to me that she must have been re-elected on her own merits.
I was interested in learning that the Senate Judiciary Committee that didn't want to deal with Clarence Thomas' sexual harassment was chaired by Joe Biden. Pelosi and six other female house members went to the committee to demand they listen to Anita Hill.
I was moved that Pelosi sat at Gabby Giffords bedside while she was lying unconscious after she was shot. When Giffords woke Pelosi was there. That shows that relationships and loyalty were important to Pelosi. To Pelosi, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords wasn't just part of the Democratic caucus. She must have been family to Pelosi.
I loved that Congressman Mark Takano created a mock up of The Art of the Deal attributed to Pelosi with Pelosi on the cover. You can find it here. Reading this biography definitely proved to me that Nancy Pelosi has been a great deal maker--perhaps the greatest Congressional deal maker of all time.
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