Rep. Tim Ryan, the Ohio congressman who is challenging House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi for the top Democratic job, is warning of problems within his party.
President-elect Donald Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton is an example of this, he said in an interview with Fox Business.
“The average American, the average working-class American, has given the middle finger to the establishment,” Ryan said. “The Democratic establishment, the Republican establishment, Wall Street, they all think they’re more interested in the donor class than they are in the working class. And they’ve sent a very strong signal, which is why I’m in this race, because I’m trying to convince my colleagues, the 200 members of our Democratic caucus, that the American people have asked us to change and we can’t continue on this path.”
An example of following the same path would be to keep Pelosi, who led House Democrats for more than 12 years, as minority leader — especially now that Republicans control the House, Senate and the executive branch.
“I’m pulling the fire alarm right now, that’s what I do in the Democratic Party,” Ryan said. “I think we’re in denial about what happened. I’m pulling the fire alarm because the house is on fire.”
He warned that if Democrats do not make drastic changes, their party could collapse.
“We better get our act together because we’re not going to be a national party, we’re going to be a regional party that can’t win a majority and can’t do anything for the working class that has been the backbone of the Democratic Party for so long,” he said. “White, black, brown, gay, straight, they all want economic opportunity and they don’t see the Democrats as the party that’s going to provide it, so we better get our act together.”
