grassley, Orin Hatch, Mitch McConnell/. Never ever seen “smirking”. They “smile”???
They also have never or will never be described with “vim and viger”.
Victorian ages are over wapo... please use proper noun and verbs to document the greatest legislature of this century- Nancy Pelosi of California!
While I don’t have an opinion about Mr. Hoyer, I don’t want Ms. Pelosi to be replaced until we have a Democratic Speaker candidate who is as good as she has been. I will never forget that she saved the ACA. Term limits sound good but I see unintended consequences for Democrats.
As I say to all the people who want promotions (often to my position!), “No one is going to come and anoint you, you earn it, even fight for it. You do not demand that it be given to you, you show you are the natural choice.” It is always astonishing that most people, in any field, don’t understand how “power” is attained. Those are the people who never get to the top, or don’t hold on long if they get there. It might not be the ideal, but it is the way an organization works. Pelosi understands this and is saying someone is going to have to depose her....and she’s right.
50
@Suzanne I agree. She is a skilled leader. We do need the skilled leaders to mentor the younger ones because time marches on for us all.
1
The new generation of freshmen, like previous generations of freshmen, believe that, because they won an election by promising a better tomorrow, they have also won the right to lead the House. But they have in fact not earned that right. They have no experience in leadership, they don't know the rules of the House, few could find their way from their offices in Longworth to the hearing rooms in Rayburn. They haven't whipped much less even sought votes on key issues nor have they proven they can make good on their promises they made for a better tomorrow. They blame their failures on those with greater seniority and, for the most part, better judgement. Power, like respect, is earned. If they want it, earn it.
85
Please, no. It is time for new leadership. Given the skill with which Pelosi handled Trump earlier this week, I think she should remain. But let's cultivate younger leadership. This is not a time for the old guard.
112
@Ann
Can you name another person, not just a democrat who would have handled Trump with such skill? You say she should remain yet this is not a time for the old guard. Which is it? A blend of the experienced, regardless of age, and the young energetic (though inexperienced) seems reasonable. Let’s not throw out the baby with the bath water.
@Ann
So, how does one Cultivate and train the younger- without seasoned "teachers?"
This proves once again how incredibly smart and able Nancy Pelosi is. She's cutting a deal which will assuage her critics, and making sure to box in Steny H. Hoyer at the same time. Hoyer, unlike Pelosi, embodies everything wrong with the Democratic Party.
At 79, Hoyer is the ultimate insider in the worst sort of way. His politics, not Pelosi's, were discredited and defeated in the last election. It is why Jacquelyn Martin wrote in Politico just after the election: "Skip Pelosi. Challenge Steny Hoyer." Martin detailed Hoyer’s long history of antagonism towards progressives, who he repeatedly derides if they directly and bluntly confront Republican authoritarianism. Hoyer tried to force progressives out of all swing-district House races in the last election. Pelosi stopped him. Worse yet, if Hoyer remains and Pelosi is gone expect him to make sure things like healthcare expansion never get done. Hoyer has a long history of undermining already existing programs. In 2012 Hoyer tried to sell out the social safety net of Americans by working to cut spending on Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.
I, for one, always thought Pelosi was the person to lead the House, and in just taking on Trump (and in being the only politician to truly hurt him), she more than proved it. Hoyer, on the other hand, should have been forced out years ago. He consistently advances corporate interests over the interests of working Americans. Little wonder he has so many billionaires pulling for him.
8
I’m truly disappointed to read of this infighting, it’s totally unnecessary. American politics is facing the biggest evil in our lifetimes and now is not the time for arguing over positions of power within the Party. It’s time to pull together and use that energy to battle this corrupt administration. Shame on Hoyer for not being a big enough human being to put his own ego aside.
There are bigger fish to fry.
2
OK... so for more years for the old guard might be justified based on their connections and experience. But Denny and Nancy epitomize why the Democrats need to get relevant, and revitalize the party and NOT recreate it in Denny and Nancy's image.
The youngsters want to get back to basics, Tax reform, Health Care reform, immigration, and most importantly, do that for the hard working Americans who've been swindled by the Republicans. Turn 'em loose!
I'm confused. Shouldn't the issue be whether a person in the leadership is effective in pursuing the goals set by the party and the caucus, not how old they are? If younger members want respect and want to succeed, they have to earn it. If they have the talent and have proved their ability to pass legislation they'll get not only the support of their younger peers but the more senior members of the party as well. I'm frankly stunned by the anti-ageism, the clear hostility to older Members of Congress by the so-called progressive younger members and their cohorts. What's next, "Soylent Green" for anyone over 65? Throw the elderly off the ramparts? Deny them healthcare so younger competitors can get an unearned leg up? A plague on you all.
2
A not so thinly disguised sneak/snark preview of how Democrats will do all they can to defeat themselves by taking a page from the Republicans' 'divide and conquer' playbook.
Hoyer reeks of entitlement--it surrounds him like cheap, abundant cologne. Very unattractive in a leader.
1
Hoyer is emblematic of the very people in the Democratic party who abandoned it in the presidential election....old white men who cannot adjust to a new cultural dynamic in the nation. While his efforts at outreach to the newly elected Democrats in Congress are noteworthy, is he merely reinforcing his own efforts at Democratic leadership one day? Sometimes the well-worn need to recognize the time to move on, even if they possess effectiveness of skills, talents and knowledge. New blood helps revive institutions.
1
These people are all ancient. They need to go. They need to knock their egos out of the door and down the stairs. It is shameful that they are in the business of prohibiting the younger, and much younger, group of lawmakers from moving into leadership positions.
Term limits are essential.
1
Rep Hoyer another hold out from the very old non democratic Democratic party. His sole interes like so many others, is to hold onto power and control and do everything you can to increase it.
That incredible sickness for power is prominent in the leadership of both parties.
Each day it becomes more urgent to limit the age of all Senators and House representatives.
What makes these people believe that they have an understanding of what voters from 18 to 50 think is important.
There is a reason why for the highest level of education, Universities and Colleges have an age limit. Why do this army of 65+ Politicians believe they are better and smarter.
Every day proves that not only the old man in the White House shows his ignorance, but so do many senators and House members, many of them not able to understand the workings of the Internet or even recognizing an Apple Iphone.
4
Wow, the party elders certainly are holding their seats. I am shocked to not see one of the younger generation of leadership in the number two slot.
2
Steny Hoyer is a big part of the root problem of the Democratic Party. He just needs to go. Retire. You aided and abetted turning the 'Party of the Working Man' into a slush fund for socially liberal rich people, while ignoring the middle class working people, poor children, senior citizens, and the working poor. You gave lip service to effective environmental regulations. You allowed McConnell to steal President Obama's Supreme Court appointment. The list of party failures you contributed to are too many to list here. Step down and let someone with some guts and zeal represent your constituents.
5
This is a good dilemma for the Party to have right now, and a good test whether it can resolve problems and provide overall effective leadership of this country. The unifying creativity and determination needed to be brought to bear are parallels of what will be needed to deal with a wounded but dangerous Executive and a difficult, obstructive Senate over the next two years, and to succeed in a monumental quest to come up with a viable and competent presidential candidate for 2020 in what is sure to be a test of the nation in the election.
1
Before the personal ambition driven Pelosi-Hover leadership rivalry consumes the party energy and its new found vigour, it is time the Democratic party leadership intervenes and amicably resolves the House leadership issue with broad consensus of the members. For, the real fight for which the Democratic party received the popular mandate still lies ahead I. e. to check Trump's unlawful transgressions, not to commit political harakiri by self decimation.
3
Steny Hoyer was born June 14, 1939, two and a half years before the attack on Pearl Harbor; in other words, midway through FDR's second term as president.
His refusal to recognize that his time has come and gone personifies his party's penchant for self-inflicted wounds that impede forward-thinking leadership rather than encourage it. He acts as if it's all about *him* rather than about us.
Desperately clinging to power for its own sake is not a pretty sight. And it's counterproductive to the extreme. How much longer does he want to block a successor -- until he's 89? ... 99? ... 100?
Becoming the Democratic equivalent of Strom Thurmond on the Capitol Hill longevity rolls hardly seems like a goal worth pursuing.
Thank you for your (many, many, many) years of service, Mr. Hoyer, but it's high time to step aside graciously and help mentor a colleague. Someone who embodies the future deserves a chance to make meaningful progress from a key position where the results have been less than inspiring.
6
If Hoyer doesn't want to accept the time limit deal (which would take him well into his 80s), perhaps Majority Leader can be the first post turned over to a new generation.
2
Young people are impatient, and usually filled with certainty that they're right. Older people want to do what's always worked for them – it's just easier. In this case, I'm on the side of the youngsters. As much as we need Pelosi as Speaker – that's how much we don"t need Hoyer and old-fashioned machine politics. Fortunately, he doesn't need to step down voluntarily; he can be voted down, and he can be voted out.
1
The best leadership not only recognizes and uses their skills but recognize that a part of their responsibility is to find and nurture others who will be even better. It is absolutely time for Dem leadership to do that.
38
We are such a fickle bunch. A few weeks ago the prevailing sentiment here was akin to putting Nancy Pelosi in a Rest Home....Then she demonstrates- with the skill no one else on either side of the aisle seems to possess; the proper way to negotiate with a foolish "king." There is room for the novice and the elder.
Moving forward as a party, it has to acknowledge it has never been good at grooming future leaders. Perhaps the DNC and local party affiliates will finally recognize the need.
5
Hoyer and Clyburn: Have some self-awareness, and step aside from your leadership positions. Now. When you're on the news, you come across as low energy, uninspired, out-of-touch, and lacking creative thinking. That's because that's what you are. Power for the sake of power -- it's clear that's all that you're really about at this point. Make way for the next generation of leadership. Now.
6
Imagine being that power hungry that you're offended at the idea of being forced to call it quits at 83?
18
One must question the wisdom of people who want to work until they drop.
2
"Steny H. Hoyer...has been in Congress for 37 years."
The U.S. desperately needs term limits!
9
For the last month Pelosi's defenders have said "she only wants two years to groom a successor."
Now she's asking for four years, and her second-in-command thinks that's too soon.
These people aren't going to give up power willingly. 80 is too old to be in charge of a major organization. And nothing of consequence will get passed during these next two years - it's a perfect time for a new speaker to learn the ropes.
The overwhelming support Pelosi currently has from Dems might be the strangest political development since Trump's 2016 win.
The spirit of anti-incumbency is at an all-time high, people are clamoring for a Dem presidential ticket featuring a freshman senator (Harris) and a baby-faced rep (O'Rourke), and yet a trio of septuagenarians who've been in power for years (and in Congress for decades!) are somehow holding onto their leadership with popular support.
It just seems like terribly stupid politics.
5
Ecclesiates: "For Everything There Is A Season" \
Kenny Rogers: "Know When To Fold 'Em".
When you are petulant, as Steny Hoyer was. it's time to go.
The idea that the old big money politics, as practiced by Mr. Hoyer, is a successful formula for Democrats was throughly disproven by Hillary Clinton and her inept campaign.
The Democratic caucus should retire Hoyer. Make room now for a fresh face.
6
Sadly, Steny Hoyer is embarrassing himself! It's obvious he is a true politician that cares more about himself than his party.
If he is not willing to mentor the next generation of party leaders, he she be asked to step down as Whip.
6
Obama did a great job. Pelosi is doing a great job. The Democrats are the only thing in politics standing between us and an autocracy, and it is the Democrats who have been around the block as leaders, and who know how to do their jobs well, who have taken back the House and given us the only real check on Trump's power. So, now some others want the power that these leaders, these heroes, have earned, and ... who the heck are they?
3
Learn how to say goodbye. We need better people than you as leaders. Go home to your grandkids and enjoy an undeserved leisure in your sunset years.
We want no wheeler dealers anymore. We had enough of them for several lifetimes.
Get lost. Take Merkel as an example.
1
Power ... to the powers that be ... it's certainly not "to the people".
1
Give it up Stenny. It’d almost time to say goodbye. As an older white manager to another older white man, your time is done. Give it up to someone 30 years younger.
4
He is #2 with no chance of being #1.....women put up with this all the time....glad the tables are turned.
2
Thank you for your service
It’s best to leave things before things leave you.
3
Good Grief. Hoyer needs to retire or he will be booted out by his constituents. He will leave in disgrace and unappreciated for all he has done for the party. If he really cared about his party, instead of his own ego, he wd have already left.
3
No one generation or place on the political spectrum has all the answers for the House Democratic Caucus. If anybody suggests otherwise they are headed down a fool's path. The more diverse the Caucus, the stronger it is and the more representative it is of the millions of Americans who are living in those districts, some of which could not be won by liberals.
This current leadership recruited and led the crop of candidates, many moderate, that turned three dozen districts. That shows that they are in-touch, not out-of-touch. It may be cool to suggest thst younger people take over with "new blood" but the election results demonstrated that experience matters. Those younger members including so many new women joining the Caucus are there partly because of the very old guard leadership so many of them are ready to disdain. They should eagerly accept mentorship from them as they ease in to positions of power themselves.
Rep. Pelosi represents the vanguard of traditional California liberalism and I have to laugh when I hear some say she's not far enough left. Rep. Hoyer, somebody I have worked around and respect for his skills, represents the valuable moderate viewpoint that is held by so many independents. The new energetic young members bring their terrific perspective appealing to urbanites and neo liberals. Working together they can forge policies that are good for the country and people--or they can use terms like corporate sellout and tear their chance to lead apart.
27
On this issue, I believe in the old sports adage that one can only when the championship by beating the champ in the ring or on the field. So, if one does not like elected leaders, then they should oust them at the polls not by implementing some species of a term limit rule. In my view, term limit mechanisms for elected positions are the epitome of an anti-democratic system of government.
2
If the fine people of the State of Maryland want to elect a 79-year old, an 89-year old, or a 99-year old to be one of their United States Senators, that, in my opinion, is THEIR right and business. The problem i have is having such a person serve as a Leader of the Senate, which I don't think should be allowed.
4
So these two were working Washington together a year before I was born. I'm not a particularly young man at this point. They were close to the age of my kids - 55 years ago! I don't really have anything terrible to say about either one, but I have a hard time believing that they are genuinely in touch with the problems my kids face today, whether by merit of age of of a lifetime spent in the bubble of Washington DC. Time for Change, not more of the same.
5
It is wonderful that those Americans with excellent health care (i.e. members of Congress) are living so long, but it is not so wonderful that the country is now being governed by so many people who are SO old. We need presidential candidates and congressional leaders who are in their fifties and sixties, not their seventies and possibly eighties!
7
It seems the Democratic leaders have been more interested in retaining power than mentoring younger people and retiring gracefully. If these people are not forced out they will die anyway so the younger people are on their own either way. I recommend term limits and encouraging Pelosi and Hoyer to become mentors rather than examples of power hungry politicians who have no regard for their constituents.
3
It is easy to trash older people,but older people have been there and done that and generally know what makes sense and what does not. There is always power in knowledge and older people have made connections, solved problems and won struggles and worked through problems far more than younger people. They are generally more patient and take a longer view. They have a lot of know how that is extremely valuable. Older people head non profits and community service and write grants and manage a lot of organizations.
They are generally survivors by nature. They have a lot to offer and a lot to give. Don't underestimate heir worth.
6
Nancy should go in ONE year and take Steny with her. The Democrats need new ideas and new leaders, and, sorry but that means younger. And I don't mean my age (66) I mean younger than 50.
5
He's literally her lieutenant, despite what he says.
1
It appears to me that if the old timers can just agree to cooperate a little bit then they can continue their hold on the Democratic leadership and on the party or what will be left of it. I suppose the slogan should be 'no change we can believe in'.
To those who assert that old age -- as the sole criterion -- disqualifies elected officials from service, I ask: Why aren't you calling for the 85-year-old Ruth Bader Ginsburg to step down?
4
I don't see where it is fair to insist that Nancy Pelosi should agree to step down from her leadership position while two men who are nearly as high on the Democratic totem pole as she is should stick around. In fact, it looks dangerously like sexism.
The Democrats need to work on making opportunities for young white males as well as women of all ages and minority candidates. That is the only way they can seriously compete with the Republicans in 2020, not only for the Presidency but also for the Congress.
The current Congress, just ending its term on December 31, had a great many Republican Representatives who decided against running for re-election. Their places, in the incoming Congress, may in part have been taken by Democrats, but I am sure there are still a lot of incoming Republican Representatives who are young and may even be white and male.
The Democrats need to have enough of the same if they are going to be able to claim that they too are a young people's party, and that they don't discriminate in favor of women and minorities.
Here in the blue states, such discrimination may be welcomed, but if Democrats are to win over enough purple states to control not only the House but also the Senate and (who knows?) even the White House, they need to take the outlook of voters in those parts of the country into consideration.
Rep Hoyer, even more than Speaker Pelosi, shows the exact need for these reforms. Rep Hoyer needs to understand that he was elected by a district, the same as every other member of Congress. That seniority should not matter for leadership, that it should not override the equality that all members of the house should share.
Bluntly, Rep Hoyer is what most of America hates about politics, including the Democratic Party. He is why we are cynics. He makes it about him, about his power, not party, people, or country are as important as his ambitions and the need to defend his venial privileges accrued over decades that are meant to give him power. Not power accrued by voting, but by corrupt institutionalism.
It is not so much fresh blood, but reasonable opportunity that doesn't dwell on men who think they own the position that they were voted into. And frankly, maybe should be voted out of.
Term limits of 18 years for House and Senate probably would improve our nation. Same with the Supreme Court. Power corrupts. It makes people think they own it, instead of it being temporarily being allowed to wield it from the people.
13
The phrase is: “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."
@Edward Brennan Rep. Hoyer actually enjoys broad respect and can successfully go in to many districts to campaign and fundraise, as the article points out. Your attacks on him are general and without substantiation. He has devoted his life to the US House, his district, and this nation in public service. To attack a person because of length of service is something that I have to stand against. Furthermore, his familiarity with House rules and procedures makes him an excellent floor manager. I look forward to seeing him once again run the daily operations of the House. There will be a day when he steps aside and somebody new can step in but they sure better have the pollical skill, knowledge to run the House, personal relationships, ability to bring people together, genial personality, and duty to patriotism that Rep. Hoyer has or else a nightmare will ensue.
The reason why the seniority system is so strong in a body like Congress is to allow for the most experienced individuals to have the positions of leadership. If they're too old, incapable, or problematic, the caucus can replace them.
Sam Rayburn was either Leader or Speaker from 1937 to 1961 when he died from cancer with just over $25,000 in the bank. That length and kind of service should be celebrated, not attacked.
As for term limits, we have them. They're called elections and dozens of Members of Congress just got term limited right out of office. The people should always have the choice.
6
@BruceE Who is pushing for term limits? It's the Koch brothers! That should be a red flag for all of those who think term limits are a good idea.
1
The Democrats need young blood. Look at the excitement generated by Beto.
Democrats need to move to the center, develop better candidates and leaders and stand for fiscal responsibility and actually provide better voting rights by highlighting Republican efforts to restrict voting.
44
@Bob in Pennsyltucky They absolutely do not need to move to the center since they've been spending most of the last 38 years moving to the right. And their centrist candidate lost spectacularly in the last election while the Democratic Socialist continued to poll 10% higher than her and her opponent in national polls.
8
@Bob in Pennsyltucky
I've been watching my Democratic Party at the Federal level almost 50 years. They have moved from-the-left; skipped the center and turned themselves into moderate Republicans while the GOP slid off the compass and turned themselves into a cult.
If you are saying the party needs to slide "leftward" to get to the center (and a wee-bit beyond); I could agree.
BTW;"providing better voting rights" would require Democrats making up the majority of State legislators and governors and a willing U.S. Supreme Court.
7
The problem with your statement is that the young blood does not want to move to the center.
It really does not matter what Mr. Heyer wants. The Dems don't have to elect him to any position. Pelosi was smart enough to know she would face a competitor unless she set the terms for her departure. That is knowing when to leave. Heyer did not get the memo.
57
Let me introduce Exhibit #2 for term limits - ladies and gents, Mr. Hoyer!
19
The Democratic Party that I grew up in was a lot more moderate and a lot more focused on equality and opportunity. Today, we are stuck on entitlements and bathrooms. In the last 50 years minorities have more children born out of wedlock and below the poverty line. That’s why we find ourselves with the president we have.
13
Richard, the dems of the past were a lot further left than the dems are now. Because the republicans have gone so far right it makes Nixon look like a moderate democrat. The left needs to go a lot further left. Your racist comment about immigrant children was a nice republican touch.
A lot of the Democrats problems in a nutshell -- talented, connected people who maybe shouldn't be thrown under the bus just for being old, yet their fairly advanced age creates a hard to escape sense that they don't really understand a lot of the issues that people 50 years younger have to face.
It doesn't help that they also seem to represent some of the Democrats worst machine politics instincts as well as some of the worst general legislative coziness with institutions and establishment types.
27
i haven’t met a single person over 65 who has the slightest grip on the impact of technology on our lives. you can see clear evidence of this in the republican questions of google and facebook. so given that fact i don’t want my leaders ignorant on important issues and they must take roles that fit their limiting skill set
2
The egocentric nature of these politicians boggles the mind. We need term limits. The people have spoken and Mr. Hoyer is lucky we’d give home four more years.
12
Do any of these old people have any sense of their own mortality? How can they be so blindly ambitious at 78, 79 and older? They have no ideas for change or helping the common man they are all in it for themselves as the current broken system works fine for them.
26
@Jack I do think they should also be helping the common woman - I mean women actually have rights too - surely you would agree? Or perhaps being old and a woman is the worst possible sin.
@HoiHa I think he was just using a very common phrase, I doubt he was singling out Ms. Pelosi for her gender. Especially since he started the comment with "any of these old people".
An argument for term limits if there ever was one.
79 years old, 37 years in Congress, and he doesn't want to be limited to just 4 more years in the democratic leadership.
Me! Me! Me!
60
Steny Hoyer represents the epitome of the 'old guard' Dems. Folks like Steny Hoyer and Terry McAuliff need to like old soldiers just 'fade away'.
I frankly would make 70 the last year any politician can run for an elected position. (I'm 67).
Power is a very addicting thing. Steny is a stone cold addict.
It's time for the younger generation to take the reins.
Bye Steny.
23
@Scott J. Although I could agree with your initial points, I would ask then, why is Pelosi any different? They ALL play the same game. Let's remember, the only reason we are commenting on this article is because Pelosi was threatened with a mutiny and in exchange for a bit more time in power she threw her 2nd in command under the bus. She could easily have yielded power to someone else but she can't shake the addition either.
They really need an age limit on these leadership positions.
13
When I read the first media accounts of Pelosi's agreement, they made it sound like she had agreed to this painful poison pill. It is anything but. When she ages out she will be 82. It will be well past time to get off the stage.
16
Steny had Pat Elder, a peace activist, running against him this fall. You can imagine that media, etc in the pro-war, neoliberal democratic area of DC wouldn't give him the time of day. BAD guy.
1
Whether term limits is a good or bad idea is an open question. However, what is not an open question is whether it is a good idea to oust the top three Democratic leaders of Congress all at once, losing the experience, leadership, connections and history while leaving those left to swing in the wind and learn to fly against a Republican headwind all too ready to take advantage of their inexperience. To believe that in the next four years these unselfish paragons will do all within their ability to bring others along so as to be fully prepared lies somewhere between naive and ridiculous.
42
@NYer. I'm confused by your comments. Do you believe that they won't do all within their ability or all that is within their ability is insufficient? And I daresay that the benefits of term limits are not in dispute. We're in the position we are now with Democratic Leadership because we don't have term limits. Sooner or later we have to stop digging the proverbial hole.
1
There is a great virtue knowing, upon quiet personal reflection, when it is time to finally leave the stage, even when you still love being there and could probably remain for some additional time. A graceful departure is far more suitable than one shrouded in hostile feelings and intra-party tensions. Nothing lasts forever Steny. Bow out with a classy exit.
27
Putting Hoyer out to pasture is perhaps the single most attractive component of the term limits deal. Nobody is going to want to reconsider this element. Nothing against Hoyer personally, but it's time to move forward. It would be a serious mistake for him not to understand that -- a mistake that could hasten his departure from leadership, not delay it.
38
It is my opinion that all three top leaders of the Democratic Caucus should, by 2020, strive to mentor
new leaders with any tips and programs that they can collectively recall to give the next generation
a chance to lead, then the old timers, all three, should fade away.
No job should require more than two years of mentoring, unless the one needing mentoring is either a
surgeon or a scientist.
1
If Hoyer thinks he has a snowball's chance in hell to be Speaker, he's as delusional as the guy squatting in the Oval Office.
52
Pack it in, Hoyer.
Go spend some time with your grandkids.
104
Aren’t there any leaders under the age of 75????
90
@Andrew
Aren't there any leaders under the age of 85?
17
@Andrew. What difference does it make? Who’s more likely to produce legislation and the strategy and tactics necessary to pass it, or stop the Rs from passing bad legislation? A junior member who is spending three quarters of his or her time learning the ropes, preparing for the next election and raising money to pay for it. Or, the experienced legislator with support from his constituents who has made friends and allies and understands the written and unwritten roles and procedures. I’ll take the old guys you disparage any day. Knowledge and guile defeat naive youth, noise, and misplaced vigor any day.
5
@Golem18 the difference is that at 75-85 any of these leaders could literally croak from natural causes at any point. IF they do, their leadership, skill, networks, and influence die with them and there appears to be no natural successors. This is a dangerous flaw of continuity that could easily be rectified.
1
At last an issue on which all congressional leaders agree - their God given right to die in power. The constituencies of every elected official eligible for Medicare have a moral obligation to examine the value of extended privilege. I personally am not voting for anyone over 70 in 2020. As a practicing Catholic I have witnessed the pitfalls of an entitled, elderly hierarchy.
61
Very informative article. As a former Marylander, it made me like Steny a little bit more.
But there is no doubt his closeness to the corporate world is not for me...I'll vote for him over any Republican, but not over any progressive Democrat.
We have slowly been undermining our country by his type of trying to get along with the centers of power on both sides of the isle. Rich Democrats do fine under Republicans, but they are selling out what we used to call labor...and more importantly, they are selling out the environment.
I envy NYC for electing AOC. Maryland doesn't have anything to compare.
17
"Is Tom Brady too old at 41 to be quarterback?"
Yes. The answer is emphatically yes. I'm convinced Brady is using some sort of drug therapy. You don't stay healthy playing football at 41 drinking spinach shakes. Something weird is going on with Tom Brady. Fortunately his inevitable decline seems imminent. New England is finally sliding.
So is the Democratic seniority system. Hoyer's question is exactly the reason we need term limits in Congress. He is another example of the old guard's obsession with "my turn" politics. Hoyer can't bring himself to consider party health over personal vanity. I won't debate which term rules are best but make no mistake: Hoyer is a Jonah.
I'd say the same thing about Pelosi but she already sold out in exchange for another feather in her cap. The bargain is raw but not a bad bargain. The change in leadership can't come soon enough. We really don't need 70 and 80 year old politicians from an age my 103 year grandmother only half-remembers and still wishes she could forget.
The country has moved on. Why can't Hoyer?
27
@AndyBrady is very possibly getting a bit long in the tooth so to speak. However, he’s not on drugs. He hasn’t had the physical slamming of most average football players. He isn’t a risk taker, avoids injury and usually has an incredible line protecting him.
5
Turns out that Mr. Hoyer is older than Ms. Pelosi. If she (or any other woman) weren't in the picture, I seriously doubt whether anyone would be questioning his age. Instead, they'd be glorifying his "wealth of experience".
21
As a Maryland resident, I am embarrassed by Senator Hoyer’s behavior. It’s time for the senior leadership of the Democratic Party to reflect its voter base.
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@Rebecca
Steny Hoyer is a member of the House, not the Senate.
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@Rebecca as a Marylander I take offense, we voted for Steny as Marylanders and he won an overwhelming portion of the vote. In other words, he reflects the voter base very well or he would not have stayed so long. People like to paint Maryland as a liberal state and although the center of the state is solidly blue, the southern, western, and eastern shore parts of the state are solidly red. Steny is a moderate from a moderate state.
Why not start term limits for the Party's elite immediately, rather than wait 2 years. It would give fresh faces and ideas a chance to fight the fight against right wing extremists.
12
Great, keep publicly in-fighting everyone, that's worked out well for Democrats great in recent years. Seriously, have we learned nothing?
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@bjorker101We learned that America wanted new. The superiors in the Democratic Party need to be mentors. Show the next generation their moves and introduce them to their donors. Ideas are past down from generation to genaration. At this point, they dies with the Democratic hierarchy.
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Time them out......let them have input as to their successors......but at a certain age with a certain perspective, it’s time they go.
10
So it seems the democrats who were shocked (!) when Trump won in 2016 will be shocked (!) when he wins in 2020. Ok.
10
I am glad that very experienced legislators will lead the Democratic caucus. Change for the sake of change doesn't make much sense to me. I also think that having a liberal number 1 in Pelosi and a more moderate number 2 in Hoyer accurately reflects the spectrum of views within the caucus.
43
Obama's greatest failing was not to develop the nexr generation of leaadership to follow up on the theme of Hope and Change. This resulted in the throwback nomination of a warmed over 90's era candidate (probably the only person that Trump could beat). The Dems need to build a cadre of 40-55 year old leaders. Steny, your time has passed, get over it.
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@jon “throwback nomination of a warmed over 90s era candidate “
Thanks for the incredible sexism that would deny a Hillary Clinton any justification to run on her merits of accomplishment, experience and passion. “The only person that Trump could beat.” Oh yeah ? Trump beat out something like 16 or 17 big star Rs before he beat Hillary for reasons that have more to do with his campaign and what he appealed to than with hers. With Democrats like these, look for a public Auto da Fe if Beto or Tulsi don’t get nominated cause they’re young.
3
Oh for crying out loud. Another Democratic circular firing squad. The ego and ambition of politicians never ceases to amaze.
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All of these people are whacky, can't wait to be out of this city.
2
Back off Hoyer..we women are already angry, don't make it worse.
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Please stand down, Steny! You are part of the reason Democrats in the House and in the electorate want transitional and then new leadership in Congress. Pelosi qualified herself by her sang-froid and candor with the pro-tem president. You, so far as we know, are just a Suit. (Admitittedly, always great haberdashery.)
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@Charlton I find that not only insulting to Mr. Hoyer but also very untrue. Steny Hoyer is in his position just as deservedly as Ms. Pelosi is. I find it astonishing that we can so easily overlook the fact that the same faults we easily find in Mr. Hoyer (age, establishment, too close to industry and donors) are ALL just as present in the character of Ms. Pelosi. I admire them both, I also think they need to solidify an exit plan and a transition but lets not pretend that they are BOTH politicians of the same mould. Just because Pelosi is "allegedly" to the left of Hoyer's views does not some how absolver her of the same sins.
Jeez, retire already.
35
Uh, oh -- upset in Pelosi-ville.
1
We need younger people in leadership positions. The Clintons cut out an entire generation to minimize competition. And now we have a vacuum.
A few people in their 70s competing against each other, but who can also raise money and generate support in the House.
And a lot of eager neophytes, with no proven ability to do either.
Whatever you think of the Republicans, they have been much more effective at growing younger leaders and plans to pass the torch.
20
There should be term limits on leadership.We need a vibrant and talented Democratic Party and that will not happen unless there is hope for young talent to move up in the ranks.Fossilized leadership is a big problem in the Senate, particularly, but it happens in the House and Steny Hoyer should be content to take a bow and leave the stage in four years at 83.Do not accuse me of ageism-I am older than he is and have great hope for a younger generation.
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As someone who lives in Steny's district, I can say, as long as he remains on the ballot, he will win. He has a strong support base in Prince Georges County, MD. The rest of Southern Maryland is pretty red, but no Republican candidate has been strong enough to win even a fraction of the votes.
9