2007 Jefferson-Jackson Dinner: Nancy Pelosi closes out APATTW

On paper, the speaker at this year's Jefferson-Jackson dinner couldn't have been more different than the speaker a year ago. Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer had arrived in a jean jacket and delivered a speech that was equal parts hunting lesson and energy symposium. By contrast, this year the Colorado Democrats welcomed California congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, the first female Speaker of the House in our nation's history.

It wasn't likely that Pelosi would reminisce about her time in 4-H. But it turned out that she had more in common with Schweitzer than one might expect.

From the beginning, her speech featured the pragmatic populism that swept the Democrats to victory in 2006. She told the crowd of nearly 2,000 about the success of the Six for '06 agenda, which included raising the minimum wage and passing a new stem cell bill. She blasted the Iraq War, pointing out that the real war on terror has been neglected.

Pelosi may lack Schweitzer's easy-going nature. But she isn't the San Francisco liberal you read about in the mainstream media, either. She's just a Democrat trying to find pragmatic solutions.

This is the final night of Coloradolib's 2nd All Positive, All The Time Week. Speaker Pelosi provided a marvelous capstone for it.

(More: Rocky, 7, SquareState)