WASHINGTON, Dec. 22 (UPI) -- Incoming U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi plans four days of celebrations for her Jan. 4 appointment as the first woman to hold the office.
Pelosi, D-Calif., has made plans to visit the Baltimore neighborhood she was raised in, attend mass at the college where she earned her degree in political science and attend a dinner at the Italian Embassy, The Washington Post reported Friday.
A University of Pennsylvania political communication and rhetoric professor told the newspaper the events appear to be aimed at casting the Democratic Party as friendly to ethnic minorities, families, religion, the working class and women.
"This is important strategic repositioning," said Kathleen Hall Jamieson. "Essentially, she's trying to embody the Democratic Party that she would like to offer the nation in 2008."
Pelosi and other Democratic leaders have initiated an "incumbent retention program" aimed at keeping seats won by thin margins secure ahead of the 2008 elections, The New York Times reported. Newly elected representatives have been promised high-profile committee seats and bill sponsorships aimed at raising the representatives' profiles and popularity in their home districts.
