Nancy Pelosi

DENVER – U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) returned to her Maryland roots Wednesday morning, calling herself the “first woman, first Marylander” Speaker of the House.

Pelosi made the remarks during a Maryland delegation reception hosted by Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon at the Renaissance Denver Hotel.

Pelosi grew up in Baltimore and her father, Thomas D’Alesandro, Jr., was a 5-term member of Congress and legendary mayor. Her brother, Thomas III, also served as Baltimore's mayor.

The Cook Political Report changed some rankings today, and Maryland 1st Congressional District remains 'Likely Republican.'

Also the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spent a lot of money this week in Virginia, Ohio, New Jersey, Illinois, Alaska and Texas. But again nothing for Frank Kratovil.

In fairness, the National Republican Congressional Committee didn't spend anything for Andy Harris, yet their one and only expenditure this week went toward knocking Nancy Pelosi in California.

Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D) and Minority Leader John Boehner (R)U.S. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Mechanicsville) registered his displeasure over the comments of his Republican counterpart, Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio), suggesting violence against Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for now allowing a vote on offshore drilling for oil.

Boehner made the offending remark in an Aug. 8 interview with Politico, discussing some 80 House Republicans continuing protest demanding that Speaker Pelosi bring the body back from summer recess to vote on offshore oil drilling.

When asked about an idea floating around that Pelosi call a special session only to vote on issues like childrens' health insurance and other Democratic agenda items, Boehner became indignant.

On Winning, Life Inside Congress & Lessons From Bill Clinton

U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Fort Washington)

On Saturday, July 19, U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Fort Washington) traveled to Austin, Texas to finally speak in person with those who were among the first to listen to her and a message that would oust an entrenched incumbent less than two years later.

Edwards was the keynote speaker at ‘Netroots Nation,’ a gathering formerly known as YearlyKos, based off the popular progressive blog, DailyKos.com. Netroots Nation is an annual gathering of the left-of-center online political community and attracts a ‘who’s who’ of Democratic politics. Former Vice President Al Gore and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also addressed the gathering in person, while U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) addressed the conference by a taped message.

But few Party leaders have the stature Edwards maintains in that community. Like 2004 presidential candidate Howard Dean and 2006 U.S. Senate candidate Ned Lamont before her, she became an online icon for her ability to channel the power of the Internet into boots-on-the-ground action.

U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Fort Washington) received her first two committee assignments on Thursday. The House’s newest member will serve on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Science and Technology Committee.

“These are two tremendous committee assignments,” said Edwards in a statement. “I would like to thank my colleagues for the opportunity to serve on these committees. We face serious challenges and I look forward to immediately getting to work on these committees in order to help my district and our country move in a new direction.”

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) expressed confidence in Edwards.

U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards: Campaign photo

Fourth district U.S. Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Fort Washington), the newest member of Congress, will deliver the keynote address at the 'Netroots Nation' conference in Austin, Texas on the evening of July 19.

Netroots Nation, formerly known as 'Yearly Kos,' began in 2006 as a conference for left-of-center political activists, many of whom frequented the website DailyKos.com. It's sponsor list reads as a who's who of progressive interests and organizations.

The event will include dozens of caucuses and workshops for activists. Other speakers include House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean, blogger Markos Moulitsas, activist Van Jones and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman.

In the teaser for her upcoming book, publisher Random House has audio portions of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi talking about getting Jerry Brown to participate in Maryland's 1976 presidential primary -- what she calls the "pivotal" action in her life's arc from "homemaker to House Speaker." She even gives a shout out to the vaunted machine of then-Baltimore County Exec. Ted Venetoulis.

Add this to your summer reading list: the first female House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will release her autobiography, "Open House," around August.

As you know, it's a story that began in Baltimore at the home of her father and famous pol Thomas D'Alesandro, Jr. Hopefully she'll share some memories from her childhood that aren't already public record.

The book may even serve a larger purpose in an election year, helping the Speaker recast herself as a tough, ethnic, Inner Harbor working-class Democrat (for more, turn your dictionaries to: Mikulski, Barbara) than an effete, elitist San Francisco liberal.

Assuming this gets the kind of broad press coverage that usually comes with this kind of book, and Democrats in conservative districts might not mind being tied to Pelosi after all.