My dislike for Nancy Pelosi has been building at an alarming rate for the past few months. Although I have high hopes for the Democratic takeover of Congress, I truly hope she is not their downfall.

You might remember a few months ago when Venezuela's Hugo Chavez called President Bush "The Devil" at the UN General Assembly. Few would argue with this statement, but for some reason Ms. Pelosi and Charles Rangel, another Democrat, stepped forward, and condemned Chavez's statement, calling him "an everyday thug."

It was my impression that Democrats had been at odds with Bush ever since he stole...errr, took...ummm, I mean got voted into office. I was made to believe that the representatives from my party were representing the party's wants and needs. All of a sudden though, someone steps in from outside and criticizes our President, only to be chastised by the President's opposition party leader. Does this seem weird to you too?

Now that the Democrats have won a majority in the House and Senate, here comes new Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi backing the underdog for majority leader, causing possibly irreparable damage and bad feelings within the Democratic party. I thought I never would say this, but Dennis Hastert (ugh) did it better when he decided to step aside and not put his official endorsement behind any of the contenders.

I truly hope that this isn't a sign of things to come. The Democrats have been given an amazing opportunity to lead congress for the first time in 12 years, and I really hope they don't mess it up. Even more than that, I truly hope that Ms. Pelosi isn't the cause or catalyst.