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• Democratic Congresswoman is the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. Before being the speaker, Pelosi was the House Minority Whip and the Minority Leader.Official Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi Pelosi was re-elected as Speaker of the House on January 6, 2009.The Hill: Pelosi reelected Speaker, unanimously backed by Dems (January 6, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Born: March 26, 1940 in Baltimore, MarylandOfficial Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi
  2. Political Party: Democratic PartyOfficial Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi
  3. Religion: Roman CatholicOfficial Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi
  4. Has 5 children and 7 grandchildrenOfficial Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi
  5. Father, Thomas D'Alesandro, Jr. was once the Mayor of BaltimoreOfficial Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi
  6. Graduated from Trinity College in Washington, DC
  7. Became the first female Speaker of the House after the Democratic party won Congress in 2006.
  8. Re-elected as Speaker of the House on January 6, 2009
  9. Daughter is documentary film-maker Alexandra Pelosi
  10. Worked with President Barack Obama to pass the 2009 Stimulus PackageOfficial Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi

• Pelosi and Waterboarding

  Pelosi has been critical of certain interrogation tactics, specifically waterboarding, used by the CIA under the Bush Administration. Critics refer to these interrogation tactics as torture.However, in recent months there has been a controversy about whether and when Pelosi was informed of these tactics.

  Pelosi has accused the CIA of misleading Congress about interrogation tactics that were used by the CIA on detainees housed in the Guantanamo Bay facility. http://cnnwire.blogs.cnn.com/2009/05/14/pelosi-accuses-cia-of-misleading-her-on-use-of-waterboarding/

  In a retort to Pelosi's claim, Leon Panetta stated on May 15, 2009, that "it is not our policy or practice to mislead Congress," stating further that extensive notes on "enhanced techniques" employed by the agency on terrorist suspects were sent to members of Congress.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/15/AR2009051502743.html?hpid=topnews

• Meeting with Brad Pitt

  Pelosi met with actor Brad Pitt in Washington D.C. on March 5, 2009 to discuss environmentally-sustainable, low income housing for those who lost their homes in Hurricane Katrina.

• Meeting with Pope Benedict XVI

  Pelosi met with Pope Benedict XVI in February 2009, during her trip to Italy. Pelosi, a Catholic who supports abortion rights, has often been criticized by Catholic leaders for her stand. The Pope released a statement after the private meeting, where he said that he had talked to Pelosi about "the dignity of human life from conception to natural death", an expression he often uses when talking about abortion. The statement also described the specific things Benedict had told Pelosi, including that all Catholics should work for "a just system of laws capable of protecting human life at all stages of its development."USA Today: Pope to Pelosi: Politicians must protect life (February 18, 2009)

• Pelosi Rick Roll

  On January 13, 2009, Pelosi posted a video entitled "Speaker Pelosi Presents Capitol Cat Cam" to her YouTube channel. The video shows two cats roaming around the speaker's office and then, approximately 37 seconds into the video, viewers are Rickrolled, as the video for Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up" begins playing. The video description reads: "In honor of the launch of http://YouTube.com/HouseHub , Speaker Pelosi presents a behind the scenes view of the Speaker's Office in the US Capitol. If after watching this video you would like further information, read..." Two links are then provided; one goes to the Wikipedia page on Rickrolling and the other leads to a New York Times article about the Rickrolling phenomenon.YouTube Video: Speaker Pelosi Presents Capitol Cat Cam (Time: 1:12)

• Family

  Pelosi was born in Baltimore, Maryland and attended Trinity University Washington. Pelosi currently resides in San Francisco, California and has five children, as well as seven grandchildren. Her daughter Christine is a political activist and superdelegate for the Democratic Party.Official Site: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi

• Key Issues

  When Pelosi became the Speaker of the House in 2007, she and the new majority Democratic Party set about a number of reforms in the "first hundred" business hours.The house condemned President Bush's troop "surge" plan for Iraq, passed an increase in the minimum wage, and passed new ethics guidelines for members of Congress. Pelosi is generally considered to be a liberal member of Congress, with a record of supporting abortion rights, gun control, increased Medicare and Medicaid benefits, and pushing for civil rights, including gay marriage.Wahington Post: Nancy Pelosi Voting Record

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