I’D DO IT JUST FOR KICKS: Do Democrats have to toss Nancy Pelosi overboard in order to take the majority?

Pelosi is already used as a liberal bogeyman by Republicans, hoping to hurt Democratic candidates between the coasts by tying them to the minority leader. After Lamb’s victory, Politico reported that “a half-dozen Democratic House members and candidates” told the outlet “they had been closely monitoring how Lamb handled the Pelosi attack.”

“A campaign manager for a Democratic candidate in a Republican-held district, granted anonymity to candidly discuss party strategy, said there’s a ‘100 percent chance that we’ll see more rejection of Pelosi from [Democratic] candidates going forward,'” Politico reported, quoting an additional Democratic strategist as saying, “Two things will happen: More Democrats are going to say they don’t support Pelosi, and Republicans will keep airing these Pelosi TV ads.”

Pelosi is a convenient — and real! — boogeyman, and her health appears to be slipping. But she does still control access to Bay Area/Silicon Valley Dem donors, which keeps her formidable no matter what.