Ex-Pelosi aide accuses Hakeem Jeffries of ‘squandering’ anti-Trump opportunities in stunning rebuke

A former top advisor to ex-Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., suggested House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is not meeting the moment in the current Trump era.

"Trump is just giving us all this incredible red meat. I mean, I've never seen anything like this before. It's like the biggest gift any party has been given by the opposition, and we're just squandering it, to a degree," former Pelosi advisor Ashley Etienne told Politico's Deep Dive podcast. 

Etienne helped Pelosi oversee Democrats' messaging during President Donald Trump's first impeachment. She also previously worked for former Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Barack Obama's 2008 campaign.

She said Jeffries was "doing well" in many areas and said she had "a tremendous amount of respect" for the New York Democrat but signaled that he was missing opportunities on anti-Trump messaging.

WATCH: AOC LEAVES DOOR OPEN FOR 2028 PRESIDENTIAL BID AS CAMPAIGN BUZZ SOARS

"He gave a speech this morning. I don't have any talking points in my phone about what he said. And I'm going to be doing TV and this interview all day. That's a failure," Etienne said.

"How do you get to discipline if you're not telling people what the hell you want them to say? At least emphatically, at least tonally."

Jeffries' allies pushed back against that characterization, pointing out that intraparty friction was taking attention away from Trump's low poll numbers and Republicans' policies.

"Donald Trump’s approval ratings are plummeting, and he’s bringing House Republicans down with him. Extreme MAGA Republicans have been forced to delay their plans to advance Trump’s centerpiece legislative priority due to intense backlash against their scheme to enact the largest cuts in history to Medicaid and food assistance. Let’s keep the main thing, the main thing," Jeffries spokesperson Christiana Stephenson told Fox News Digital.

Just Friday morning, Jeffries released a statement hammering House Republicans for having to delay part of their legislative work to advance Trump's agenda.

But Etienne's comments are a notable rebuke from a former senior Democratic leadership aide to one of the party's most powerful current officials, which comes after months of Democrats being plagued by infighting over messaging woes.

Etienne noted that Democrats had scored several wins on the messaging front, like having "successfully demonized Elon Musk" and Sen. Cory Booker's recent record-breaking filibuster speech.

But she singled out liberals' protests during Trump's speech to a joint session of Congress as an "embarrassing" setback for the party and Jeffries.

"If you look at the headlines post-the speech, even during the speech, it was more about Democrats and Democrats protesting rather than what Trump was actually saying. And in those kind of moments, you don't want to become the story. You want Trump to be the story," Etienne said.

"And I also thought it was a problem for Mr. Jeffries. I mean, it really says a lot about how people value his leadership. He asked for no protest. And what did they do? They protest 50 different ways."

AOC CLAIMS 'WE ARE ONE' IN CAMPAIGN-STYLE VIDEO DESPITE YEARS OF INVOKING RACE, GENDER IN POLITICS

Both Pelosi and Jeffries' offices told Politico that the latter often seeks the former's input, and Jeffries' spokesperson pushed back on Politico's reporting that House Democratic leaders were seeking to move past Pelosi and that Jeffries was not doing enough to help Democratic groups with messaging. 

One of those groups, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC), pushed back on the assertion they were not hearing enough from Jeffries.

PCCC sent out a press release that read, "Today, in a POLITICO article we are not interested in dwelling on, a former Pelosi staffer attacked Hakeem Jeffries. PCCC co-founder Adam Green said, ‘We hear more from Jeffries than we ever heard from Pelosi.’"

Meanwhile, a House Democratic aide told Fox News Digital that Jeffries held "multiple calls" previewing his earlier speech on Trump's first 100 days in office, as well as talking points "emphasizing the Leader’s message that President Trump’s first 100 days have been a disaster for the American people."

Stephenson, Jeffries' spokesperson, also posted on X of Politico's report, "Can anyone tell me how grandstanding like this is anything other than a gift to Republicans?"

But House Republicans' elections arm was quick to pounce on the discord as well.

"Hakeem Jeffries is the so-called leader of a team that doesn’t fear him, doesn’t follow him, and now, doesn’t even pretend to respect him," National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) spokesman Mike Marinella said in a statement. 

And Democratic strategist Julian Epstein, a former chief counsel of the House Judiciary Committee, criticized Jeffries' leadership but said that Trump was not Democrats' main problem.

"He's not a particularly effective speaker, gives no sense of direction or purpose, seems intent on not offending anyone, and has a leadership style that seems extremely passive," Epstein said.

"The Democrats in the House just seem like a big blob that goes wherever gravity takes them, and right now gravity is taking them to the hard protest left. But no matter who the leader is, if the Democrats are selling a product that voters don't like, it won't matter."

Pelosi's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Dems fume over ‘due process’ for Abrego Garcia despite long history of party bucking the legal principle

Democrats are facing pushback as they continue to call for due process for illegal immigrant and suspected MS-13 member Kilmar Abrego Garcia after years of seemingly ignoring due process for their political rivals. 

During the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election and the first Trump term, many Democrats called for President Donald Trump to be put in jail despite only facing allegations of impropriety at the time.

"He needs to be imprisoned & placed in solitary confinement," Democrat Rep. Maxine Waters said in October 2019.  "But for now, impeachment is the imperative."

"I don’t want to see him impeached, I want to see him in prison," then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reportedly told fellow Democrats in 2019, according to Politico.

VANCE SOUNDS OFF ON DEPORTATION, 'RATIFICATION OF BIDEN'S ILLEGAL MIGRANT INVASION' VIA 'FAKE LEGAL PROCESS'

Democrats also assured the public that January 6 prisoners were receiving due process in terms of their treatment in jail despite Republican claims to the contrary and arguing that the defendants were being held for too long.

"They want to have a conversation about whether or not their iPads are working or if they have enough time on their iPads," Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas said in 2023, according to the Dallas Observer. "This is what I'm hearing. As someone who's been a public defender, let me tell you something: They know nothing about what bad conditions are."

During a Jan. 7 press conference, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said about the January 6th protesters, "No leniency. No leniency for these people. They have the cameras all over. They have their pictures. No matter what part of the country they came from, we ought to go after them right now."

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called for Kyle Rittenhouse to be thrown in jail as his trial was still developing. 

"Lock up Kyle Rittenhouse and throw away the key," Jeffries posted on X, then known as Twitter, during the trial where Rittenhouse was facing a homicide charge for his actions during a George Floyd riot in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Rittenhouse was ultimately acquitted. 

APPEALS COURT DENIES DOJ BID TO BLOCK RETURN OF KILMAR ABREGO GARCIA FROM EL SALVADOR PRISON

Democrats fought vigorously against the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court and amplified allegations of sexual assault against him before any due process had been completed investigating those claims.

Speaking to CNN's "State of the Union," Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, called for an independent FBI investigation of claims against Kavanaugh, before explaining why the presumption of innocence and due process should not apply to his case.

"I put his denial in the context of everything that I know about him in terms of how he approaches his cases," Hirono told host Jake Tapper, in response to a question about whether Kavanaugh was entitled to a presumption of innocence. "His credibility is already very questionable in my mind....  When I say that he's very outcome-driven, he has an ideological agenda, and I can sit here and talk to you about some of the cases that exemplify his, in my view, inability to be fair."

Over the past few weeks, Jeffries and other Democrats have been vocal proponents of due process when it comes to Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an illegal immigrant with alleged ties to a violent gang who was deported to El Salvador.

Many Democrats have railed against the Trump administration over issues like due process and questions about the kind of treatment Garcia could be receiving in the prison he is allegedly being housed in. 

"Mistakenly removing a U.S. resident that has protection from deportation legally granted to him by an immigration court and then making no effort to get him back not only places Mr. Abrego Garcia’s life in danger, but also violates the basic principles of due process and the rule of law," Waters said in a recent letter to Trump. 

The face of the resistance to Garcia's deportation has been Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., who traveled to El Salvador to meet with Garcia last week which drew strong criticism from the White House.

Van Hollen also opposed Kavanaugh's confirmation using the unsubstantiated sexual assault allegations against him.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, White House spokesperson Kush Desai said, "If the hill that Democrats want to die on is demanding the return of a violent illegal alien, wifebeater, and foreign terrorist, we are happy to dig that grave for them."

Some on social media have called out Democrats in recent days for alleged hypocrisy on the issue of due process, with many pointing out the millions of illegal immigrants who entered the country under President Joe Biden with little to no concern from his party. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"I’m here to remind you that Democrats have never actually cared about due process," Townhall columnist Dustin Grage posted on X while quoting the Jeffries post on Rittenhouse. "Hope this helps."

"Democrats do not care about due process, not one bit," Breitbart senior editor Joel Pollak posted on X. "That's why we now have millions of illegal aliens in the country to begin with – and also why they trashed the civil liberties of hundreds of witnesses and defendants under Biden."

"The entire purpose of flooding us with immigrants was to make due process impossible," Twitchy’s Amy Curtis posted on X. "That some are okay with this, and don’t care about undoing the damage done by Democrats does not surprise me."

"It's important to remember that when it came to BLM mob demands and accusations of sexual assault against men (believe all women), the left/Democrats proudly dismissed Due Process," conservative commentator Chad Felix Greene posted on X. "They only care about Constitutional rights when they believe it benefits them politically."

Pelosi denies breaking promise to back McCarthy in speakership vote

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on Friday denied that she had promised to support her fellow Californian Rep. Kevin McCarthy as he was ousted as speaker.

"Kevin McCarthy says that you essentially broke a promise to him to keep Democrats with him if there was a vote against him. Is that not true?" FOX 11 Los Angeles anchor Elex Michaelson asked Pelosi in a recent interview. 

Shaking her head, Pelosi said she had never promised to help McCarthy, R-Calif., remain as speaker.

"Not really. I had no promise to him," Pelosi told FOX 11. "Our Democratic members made that decision." 

GOP LAWMAKERS DENY REVENGE PLAY AGAINST PELOSI WITH OFFICE EVICTIONS AFTER MCCARTHY OUSTER

McCarthy lost the speaker's gavel this week after a handful of hardliners in the Republican conference led by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., forced a vote to vacate the chair. Eight Republicans and every Democrat voted together to remove McCarthy as House speaker. 

At a press conference after the vote, McCarthy blamed Democrats for his ouster, arguing they should have voted against the motion to vacate the chair for institutional reasons.

McCarthy claimed to have had a discussion with Pelosi in the days leading up to the vote and told reporters she had promised to support him.

But Pelosi said Democrats had numerous reasons to vote to oust McCarthy, citing the Republican-led impeachment inquiry into President Biden and McCarthy's support for former President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. 

NANCY PELOSI EVICTED FROM HER PRIVATE OFFICE IN THE CAPITOL BY INTERIM HOUSE SPEAKER

"If you don’t respect the institution then don’t expect us to bail you out," she said.

McCarthy has since said he will not run for speaker again. On Friday, he denied reports that he will resign from Congress, saying, "I'm not resigning. I got a lot more work to do." 

McCarthy was succeeded by Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., a temporary replacement until the House votes on a permanent one next week. Among his first acts as speaker pro-tempore, McHenry evicted Pelosi from her private Capitol office in what was claimed to be an act of retaliation after McCarthy was ousted.

However, several GOP lawmakers told Fox News Digital that the evictions were not rooted in vengeance, but rather because the office is reserved for the immediately preceding speaker.

WHO IS PATRICK MCHENRY, SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE OF HOUSE FOLLOWING MCCARTHY'S OUSTER?

"This was a decision by Speaker Pelosi in getting removed because that is the office for the former speaker," Louisiana GOP Rep. Garret Graves told Fox News Digital on Wednesday.

"She's no longer the immediately preceding speaker so that was a decision she made by evicting Kevin McCarthy," Graves continued. "That was her own decision."

House Freedom Caucus chairman Scott Perry, R-Pa., said the evictions were not done in revenge but that it seems to him "unfortunately that we have an unexpected recent vacancy in this with the speaker's office and that speaker that's been recently the speaker now has to have a place per the rules."

"So that [place] needs to be reoccupied or occupied by somebody different," Perry said. "That's just the that's just the flow of business here."

Fox News' Houston Keene contributed to this report.

Speaker McCarthy met with Hakeem Jeffries and vowed to play nice after Pelosi called him a ‘moron’

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was so offended by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi calling him a "moron" that he met with her successor, Democratic leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., to make a mutual vow that they would play nice.

Pelosi was dismissive of McCarthy's leadership during his time at the head of the Republican minority, but his relationship with Jeffries has been notably more respectful. The pair are up front with their disagreements, but have not yet resorted to name-calling.

"We’ll continue to agree to disagree without being disagreeable with each other and find common ground when possible, therefore continuing to work together," Jeffries told Punchbowl News on Wednesday. "It remains a positive, forward-looking, communicative relationship."

"I have a great deal of respect for him," McCarthy said of his counterpart. "We’re going to disagree on different issues. I believe based on the information that we have now, the Congress just needs to get more answers. That’s what we’re going about doing," he added, referring to a presidential impeachment inquiry.

'THE VIEW' CO-HOST UPSET BY BIDEN'S AGE 'NARRATIVE': 'HE AIN'T DYING ANYTIME SOON'

"I have worked hard to make sure we have respect for one another. Even when we have, like any relationship, a difference of opinion, I’m going to explain my position to him. He has been very honest and direct with me when he has disagreed, which has been many times. I respect his position. I know what happens today, tomorrow it can be something else," he told Punchbowl.

WAPO COLUMNIST ARGUED BIDEN ‘TOO OLD’ TO RUN AGAIN, SHOULD HAVE STOPPED HUNTER'S ‘ATTEMPTS TO IMPRESS CLIENTS’

Pelosi, who has just announced plans for re-election, hasn't let off the gas on McCarthy, however. She described McCarthy as having an "incredibly shrinking speakership" during an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper on Sunday.

Pelosi first got on McCarthy's bad side in 2021, in an incident that came when McCarthy slammed a House mask mandate as not following the science.

PEOPLE BORN THE SAME DAY AS BIDEN DEFEND PRESIDENT AMID AGE CONCERNS: '80 IS THE NEW 60'

"Make no mistake – The threat of bringing masks back is not a decision based on science, but a decision conjured up by liberal government officials who want to continue to live in a perpetual pandemic state," McCarthy said at the time.

Asked to react to McCarthy's comment at a filmed public event, Pelosi responded: "He's such a moron."

McCarthy and Jeffries' respectful relationship is likely to be tested in the coming months as Republicans get underway with their impeachment inquiry against President Biden. Jeffries has already called the effort "illegitimate."

Fox News' Tyler Olson contributed to this report.

Nancy Pelosi, 83, will run for her seat in Congress again in 2024

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., will seek a 20th term in the U.S. House of Representatives, announcing Friday she is running for re-election in 2024. 

Pelosi, 83, declared her candidacy for California's 11th Congressional District representing San Francisco in a post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. 

"Now more than ever our City needs us to advance San Francisco values and further our recovery. Our country needs America to show the world that our flag is still there, with liberty and justice for ALL," Pelosi said. "That is why I am running for reelection — and respectfully ask for your vote."

Pelosi stepped down from serving as leader of the House Democratic Caucus last year, passing the torch to current House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. She now serves among the rank-and-file, though Democratic lawmakers have dubbed her as "Speaker Emerita" out of respect for her more than 35-year tenure in the House.

PELOSI SAYS MANY TRUMP SUPPORTERS DON'T VALUE HUMAN DIGNITY FOR EVERYONE

First elected to Congress in 1987, the Democratic leader made history becoming the first female speaker in 2007, and in 2019 she regained the speaker's gavel.

Pelosi led the party through substantial legislative achievements, including passage of the Affordable Care Act, as well as turbulent times with two impeachments of former President Donald Trump.

PELOSI CALLS TRUMP INDICTMENTS ‘BEAUTIFUL,’ SAYS A TRUMP WIN IN 2024 WOULD BE LIKE ‘THE WORLD BEING ON FIRE’

Her announcement puts to rest any suggestion of retirement, though it comes amid concerns over the advanced age of numerous elected officials, including octogenarian Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; 90-year-old Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; and President Biden, who is 80.

McConnell, 81, renewed concerns about his age and fitness for office after he froze in front of news cameras last month for the second time this year. 

McConnell’s physician medically cleared him to continue with business as usual and did not find any evidence of a stroke or a seizure after several tests, per an announcement Tuesday. 

NANCY PELOSI ANNOYED BY MSNBC QUESTION ABOUT IMPEACHING BIDEN: ‘WITH ALL DUE RESPECT … THIS IS FRIVOLOUS’

Even so, the episode prompted critics like Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley to deride the Senate as a "privileged nursing home." At least one House member, Rep. John James, R-Mich., introduced a resolution to amend the Constitution to impose an age limit on holding federal office. James' proposal is to bar anyone who would be 75 or older from running for president, vice-president or either house of Congress. 

Biden has not escaped scrutiny over his age, either. A recent Wall Street Journal poll found two-thirds of Democrats think he is too old to run for president again. Pelosi has come to the president's defense, however, calling age "relative." 

"I think the president should embrace his age, his experience, the knowledge he brings to the job. Actually, the leader on the other side is not much younger. I don’t like to use his name, but you know who I mean. He’s not that much younger. So I don’t think — age is a relative thing. It is — and I think this president, our country is very well served by his leadership, again, his experience, his knowledge, and it counts for a lot," she said. 

Pelosi added that Biden is "a kid to me." 

Fox News' Elizabeth Elkind and Hanna Panreck and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Pelosi refuses to weigh in on possible Trump indictment or even say his name

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on Monday night refused to engage in a discussion about the potential looming indictment against former President Donald Trump in New York City.

The Democrat, who stepped down from House leadership this year, was asked during a Wall Street Journal speaking event about whether Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case against Trump, involving alleged hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels, was the "right vehicle for challenging" him – or whether it will boost his chances of winning the 2024 Republican nomination.

"I think that’s a matter for the courts," Pelosi answered. "The grand jury will vote and decide on the basis of evidence they have, as to whether there should be any follow-up to that information."

SOME DEMOCRATS FEAR ARRESTING TRUMP COULD BACKFIRE, QUESTION STRENGTH OF CHARGES

"It’s not for any of us to say whether he should be indicted or not, it’s the basis of the law, and the facts, and that’s up to the court. So that’s all I’ll say about him," she said.

Pelosi ended the answer with a jab at Trump, her former political nemesis that she refused to name: "I don’t like talking about him."

That response was relatively reserved for the lawmaker who spearheaded two different impeachment inquiries into the former GOP commander in chief when she was House speaker.

HOUSE DEMOCRATS EXPLODE AT GOP ATTEMPT TO ‘INTERFERE’ WITH MANHATTAN DA'S TRUMP INDICTMENT: ‘ABUSE OF POWER’

Trump had said on his Truth Social app last week that he expected to be indicted in Bragg’s probe on Tuesday. No indictment was announced, but reports suggest a decision on possible charges could come as early as Wednesday afternoon. Fox News Digital reported on Monday that he had not yet been informed of a coming indictment at the time.

Pelosi is not the only Trump critic who’s been reserved in their responses to the explosive rumors.

TRUMP ADDRESSES POTENTIAL STORMY DANIELS INDICTMENT IN LATE-NIGHT VIDEO ADDRESS ON TRUTH SOCIAL

Two GOP senators who have been known to break from Trump on multiple occasions hesitated to weigh in on the matter when asked by Fox News Digital on Monday evening.

"I’m really not going to comment on this until we know what happens," said Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah.

Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., told Fox News Digital when asked if an indictment should disqualify Trump from seeking the nomination, "That’ll be up to the people that vote in each state because that’s where it’ll be determined, but for right now, there has been no indictment at this stage of the game."

Nadler feuded with Schiff, Pelosi over ‘unconstitutional’ impeachment of Donald Trump

House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler feuded with Adam Schiff and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi over Trump's 'unconstitutional' impeachment process, a new book claims.

Pelosi blasts McConnell and ‘cowardly group of Republicans’ in Senate after Trump impeachment acquittal

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., blasted Senate Republicans as cowards who refused to stand up to former President Trump and find him guilty in the impeachment trial.

Trump impeachment defense team puts Democrats on trial for past hot rhetoric: ‘Stop the hypocrisy’

Former President Trump's legal team tried to put Democrats on trial Friday by repeatedly playing clips of their past hot rhetoric and accusing liberals of setting a new "dangerous double standard" when it comes to Trump.

Pelosi rejects Trump impeachment acquittal, says Senate will reveal ‘cowards or courage’

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., rejected any notion that former President Trump is headed for a second acquittal in the Senate during his impeachment trial.