BREAKING: Nancy Pelosi steps back from leadership position in new Congress

Longtime Democratic politician and current Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced on Thursday that she would not be seeking reelection to Democratic leadership in the next Congress. She will not be retiring, with Pelosi's office saying on Thursday morning that the California Democrat will step back from her role as the head of the party's caucus, but will remain in Congress as a backbencher.

After a lengthy speech, Pelosi told the House that it was "with great confidence in our caucus," that she "will not seek reelection to Democratic leadership in the next Congress. For me, the hour's come for a new generation to lead the Democratic caucus that I so deeply respect.

"I'm grateful that so many are ready and willing to shoulder this awesome responsibility," she said. "Madam Speaker, standing here today, I'm endlessly grateful for all of life's blessings," she said, thanking her Democratic colleagues, her husband Paul who is continuing to recover from a hammer attack, her children, her staff, and the people of San Francisco. 

Pelosi will serve as a manager to her successor's transition as a type of coach.

"Given that she really didn’t lose the election and that the majority of her caucus is still obsessively in need of her leadership, she’s decided to stay," an insider told Puck News before the public statement. "Plus she can still raise a sh*t-ton of money unlike anyone else in that caucus."

When concluding her Speech, Pelosi said, "As we participate in the hallmark of our republic, the peaceful transition from one congress to the next, let us consider the words of, again, President Lincoln, spoken during one of America's darkest hours.

"He called upon us to come together, to swell the chorus of the union. When once again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature. That again is the task at hand

"A new day is dawning on the horizon, and I look always forward to the unfolding story of our nation, a story of light and love, of patriotism and progress. Of many becoming one. And always, an unfished mission to make the dreams of today the reality of tomorrow. Thank you all, may God bless you and your families, and may God continue to bless our veterans and the United States of America," Pelosi concluded.

Pelosi's speech also included jabs at the Trump administration. Pelosi said, "Indeed, American democracy is majestic, but it is fragile. Many of us here have seen its fragility firsthand, tragically, in this chamber. So democracy must be forever defended from forces that wish it harm.

"Last week, the American people spoke, and their voices were raised in defense of liberty, of the rule of law, and of democracy itself," she said.

"With these elections, the people stood in the breach and repelled the assault on democracy. They resoundingly rejected violence and insurrection, and in doing so, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there."

This is a breaking story and will be updated.