It has been way too long since I've finished a book, jeez!
The Art of Power by Nancy Pelosi was kind of a political practitioner's handbook following the timeline of Nancy Pelosi's big moments of her career. There were so many nuggets of political wisdom, in fact, that I'll actually list them all below:
- Know your votes; "a successful [person] must never be surprised by anything. You must know what all the possibilities are, all of the time," (p39, p46)
- "Where we can find our common ground...we shall seek it...Where we cannot find that common ground, we must stand our ground," (42)
- Do not delay on controversial items- "Everyone with an agenda will chip away at your delayed decision," (p47).
- The thinking that informs and supports a [person's] intuition must be strategic and respected it. That is why..it is absolutely vital to maintain a constant level of member contact - you need to know what your members are thinking," (p47).
- "As with a kaleidoscope, the coalition that works in one design is not necessarily replicated in another combination," (p48). In other words, you may find strange bedfellows in one policy fight, and those same individuals your opposition in another. Further, "We don't want to weaken or dismiss anyone for one position they may hold- because they may be vital to the overall design of another issue and another important vote- and soon," (p50).
- A quote from a survivor of Tianenmen Square, "if we had fought our struggle with violence, we would not have as many friends as we do now," (p140).
- In Washington, the unwritten rule is that the leader who hosts the meeting controls the agenda," (p151). It is also protocol, in a meeting with the president, for the president to open the meeting then recognize the Speaker of the House for comments," (p166).
- Demonstrating the power of institutional knowledge and knowing the rules of the game, "[late Senator] Harry Reid demonstrated his highly regarded effectiveness by requiring all senators to remain in their seats while the votes were cast," (p173).
- In a bind, "according to the rules of Congress, passing a budget bill would enable us to use a process called reconciliation-which lowers the number of votes needed to pass a measure in the Senate from sixty to fifty-one," (p192).
- "When members are asked to make what is for them a difficult vote, they need to know that the bill will be signed," (p239).
- "Leadership means never being content with history, when you can and must make progress," (p303).
Some hope despite the state of US politics, what saved the Affordable Care Act after Trump was elected in 2016 was outside mobilization. Hopefully we can make that happen again.
Good book- would recommend, but mostly for those working in politics.