Feel Good Story: Nancy Pelosi might leave Congress after the elections

I have no idea why she stayed on after the humiliating defeat of 2010. Pelosi is from a wealthy family and very rich. She doesn't need the money. Perhaps she thought she could turn it around in 2012. It's not happening.

Via Roll Call:

Facing an uphill battle to reclaim the House in November, many Democrats are speculating whether Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi might leave Congress after the elections and are wondering what sort of fallout the leadership structure would face if she did.

While the California lawmaker’s intentions are essentially unknowable — her top aides had no idea she would stay on in the wake of Republicans winning the House in 2010, when it was widely expected she would step down — people who know Pelosi well say it is unlikely she would opt for a quick exit.

In interviews with more than two dozen lawmakers, aides and lobbyists, some instead predict that Pelosi will stay in Congress to help set the stage for a successor, rather than allow Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (Md.) to simply move up the ranks to replace her.