Mrs. Pelosi may figure she can bludgeon House Democrats into line, as she always has in the past. But Senators are a different story. The Speaker and her agenda couldn’t win a race for city council in Mr. Manchin’s state of West Virginia. Mr. Biden lost the state by 39 points to Donald Trump.

If progressives defeat the infrastructure bill, the centrists will know they’re not even the tail wagging the tail of the Democratic caucus. They’re essentially hostage to progressive demands that are likely to cost the swing-state Members their seats in 2022. But it’s hardly better if the Speaker postpones a vote. This would also mean the progressives are still in charge, and who knows when they’ll let the Speaker hold the vote.

The swing-staters may have made Mrs. Pelosi the Speaker again in 2020, but in 2021 they’re supposed to salute and sacrifice their political careers to the demands of Bernie Sanders and the Squad.