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Democrats promote absentee ballots, early voting and removing barriers and obstacles from the polls -- except in House leadership races apparently.

House Democrats rejected their pregnant colleagues plea to submit proxy votes in the House Democratic Caucuss leadership and committee elections next week. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, a disabled war veteran who is due to have her first child in December, is missing the elections in person next week because her physician advised her not to travel.

While proxy voting is explicitly against caucus rules, Duckworth, who had both of her legs amputated when the helicopter she was flying was shot down in Iraq, wrote a letter from Illinois to request a waiver due to her extraordinary circumstances. Democrats are scheduled to vote on their leadership team via secret ballot next Tuesday and are also expected to decide senior committee assignments next week.

The drama played out at a closed-door meeting Thursday, when Duckworths request was debated before the caucus.

Democrats like Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the co-chair of the Democrat Steering and Policy Committee, cautioned colleagues against setting new precedent for the secret ballot elections.

But Rep. Jan Schakowsky, vice-chair of the steering and policy committee and one of Duckworths colleagues from Illinois, made a motion to permit a concession to Duckworth, whose letter was read to the caucus.

"I write to request your assistance regarding upcoming votes four our Caucus," her letter stated, according to the National Journal, which first broke the story. "As you are aware, I am in the final weeks of my pregnancy, and have been instructed by my physician not to travel. As a result, I will not be attending the upcoming Caucus meetings in person."

"I would like to request a proxy vote on the upcoming leadership and ranking member elections that will come before the Caucus in the coming weeks, she continued.

According to a Democratic aide in the room during the debate, a pivotal moment came when Rep. Gwen Moore spoke out to ask whether she could proxy vote as well because she plans to attend a funeral in Wisconsin next Tuesday.

Moores request soured the mood of the room against Duckworths motion, the aide said, with Members realizing the slippery slope argument that others had made. Schakowsky then pulled her motion for Duckworth.

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House Democrats Deny Pregnant Proxy Vote in Leadership Elections

After every battle,you have winners, you have losers, and you have the losers who try very hard to find asilver lining.

In the 2014 election, Republicans claimed victory, Democrats lost the Senate majority andthe Democrats in charge of trying to 300 a midtermcycle where they didn't have much to work withare trying to find a bit of treasure in all the debris.

As House Democratic campaign chairman Steve Israel (N.Y.)told the Hill, it turns out that all the House races that have been called since Election Day have been Democratic victories. Thatdoessound like a silver lining ... if you ignore the context of those wins. All of the races featured Democratic incumbents, and many of themwere expected to have easy paths to re-election.

Last Friday, Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.) declared victory in Maryland's 6th district. Cook Political Report said it was a race Democrats were expected to easily win. Delaney was ahead by less than 2,000 votes when his opponent conceded. In New York's 25th district, meanwhile, Rep. Louise Slaughter(D-N.Y.)barely won. The race was also expected to be an easy win. In California's 24th district, Rep. Lois Capps (D-Calif.) had a narrow victory in a race ... well, you get the idea.

If anything, these hard-to-call wins reinforce the storyline that Democrats are trying to re-imagine. Because of the inclement environment Democrats faced this year, victories that should have been announced immediately en masse needed tobe doled out one-by-one after a careful vote count.

Other House victories, made long after the narrative of a Republican mass-smushing had solidified, were in races that had been considered toss-ups all along. However, when you look at these wins along with the rest of the toss-ups, the Democrats' post-election success rate of 100 percent looks less stunning.

Out of the 22 House races rated toss-ups by Cook Political Report, Democrats have won seven of them. Two races -- Arizona's 2nd district and California's 7th -- remain unresolved and very close. One that Democrats were expected to win easily -- Rep. Jim Costa's (D-Calif.) seat -- is still too close to call. He is in the lead, but only by about 100 votes.

Republicans also won three seats that Democrats were expected to win narrowly. So that kind of undercuts the Democrats' toss-up winning percentage.

As for the GOP, it hasn't lost a non-toss-up. Two House races in Louisiana that Republicans were expected to easily win are headed to a runoff. One of the races might sound vaguely familiar -- former governor Edwin Edwards (D) is running -- but Republicans are expected to win both. The GOPcandidates in both races also have big fundraising advantages.

All of this said, it is true that this late accumulation of wins by House Democrats makes theirtrack record looka lotbetter than it did on election night. Despite the close margins in some races that looked like sure-wins, Democrats mostly won where they were supposed to in House races, and the party could keep its losses in the low-teens. With all those toss-up races -- and the tendency for toss-ups to all fall in one direction -- Democrats were facing losses potentially bigger than they had already bracedthemselves for. When that didn't happen, they were entitled to at least stop holding their breathin fear, even if they weren't allowed a victory dance.

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Democrats search for an elusive silver lining in the House

NBA jam: on fire edition republicans vs democrats

By: caleb smith

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NBA jam: on fire edition republicans vs democrats - Video

Which Way Should the Democrats Go?
Nov. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Post-mortem advice from Stan Greenberg, who pulled the progressive levers for Bill Clinton, and Al From, who pushed the centrist buttons for the same guy. (Source: Bloomberg)

By: Bloomberg News

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Which Way Should the Democrats Go? - Video

Senate Democrats May Vote on Keystone in Lame Duck Session
The U.S. Senate may hold a vote on a bill to approve the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada when it returns from recess, largely to boost support for Democrat Mary Landrieu #39;s run-off election...

By: WochitGeneralNews

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Senate Democrats May Vote on Keystone in Lame Duck Session - Video