It’s unclear to which grindstone Weiner will put his nose. Since his days as the glib spokesman for Senator Chuck Schumer, Weiner has been a fully public figure: He has no major legislation to his name, and no obvious fondness for filling local potholes…
His role in Congress has largely been filling a niche – the liberal loudmouth, willing to shout down Republicans or embrace things like single-payer health care. That’s not a role that Democrats are going to want him to fill now…
Weiner, unlike some survivors, is a loner on Capitol Hill. He aligned himself against Pelosi in a 2006 leadership fight, and she bears him no particular love.
But Weiner’s wife, Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin, is standing by him, two sources said. That’s an important vote in his favor in the public eye, but it also means the Clintons – to whom Abedin is just short of being a family member – and their allies are unlikely to turn on Weiner.
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