CARROTS AND STICKS.

CARROTS AND STICKS. Yesterday, Dana told us about some of the carrots Nancy Pelosi is using to garner sufficient Dem votes for the House Iraq war supplemental bill. Today in The Hill we hear about the sticks:

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is holding the implied threat of lost committee seats over the heads of Democratic Caucus members who may vote against her $124 billion Iraq war supplemental bill�

She has been hardest on members of the Appropriations Committee and her fellow Californians who oppose the measure. The Speaker pointedly reminded Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), a leading opponent of the bill, that she had appointed her to the Appropriations Committee, three Democratic lawmakers said.

The message was simple, the lawmakers said: Pelosi could also remove Lee from the panel.

During a meeting last week with appropriators, Pelosi reminded them that serving on the panel was a privilege, admonishing lawmakers from safe districts who feel they have the luxury to vote how they want without consequences � as opposed to Democrats elected in swing districts who do not, a Democratic appropriator said.

The piece goes on to discuss the grumbling from liberals such as Maxine Waters and Marcy Kaptur. (John Lewis, who like Waters is on the Democratic leadership's whip team, has also said he'll be voting against the bill.) Majority Leader Steny Hoyer didn't exactly sound super-confident in his handicapping:

�Do I have 218 people that I know are definite �yeses� right this minute? The answer to that is no. � Do I think we will have 218 votes on this bill when we call it up for a vote? The answer to that is yes,� Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) told reporters yesterday. �[Do] I think we will need to delay it? I hope the answer to that is no and believe it is no.�

If they get to the magic number, a vote could happen tomorrow or Friday.

--Sam Rosenfeld