The only positive thing that might come about from the upcoming Nov. bloodbath: If GOP gains a majority in Nov., Nancy Pelosi is likely to step down.

Nancy Pelosi has granted candidates permission to say or do what they need to about her to survive what could be a Republican tidal wave.

From The Wall Street Journal:

Swing-district Democrats, fighting for their political lives, are beginning to turn on Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.), one of the most powerful House speakers in decades but also one of the most polarizing figures in U.S. politics.

The ferment among moderate to conservative Democrats shows that Ms. Pelosi, more than President Barack Obama, has become a target of voter anger in the 2010 campaign, the face of a party that passed a health-care bill into law and navigated controversial climate-change legislation through the House.

On Friday, a Tennessee congressional candidate called on her to step aside. "What we have said is that she not seek the office of speaker in the next legislative session," said Brett Carter, a Democrat and Iraq War veteran waging an uphill fight for the seat of retiring Rep. Bart Gordon (D, Tenn.). "That allows us to campaign this fall uninhibited by questions we get about her on the campaign trail daily, whether we're going to vote for her."

If the Republicans gain a majority in November, Ms. Pelosi is likely to step down rather than try to serve as the Democrats' minority leader or a rank-and-file lawmaker, leadership aides say.

Ms. Pelosi has become a focal point for candidates trying to channel voter anger at Washington.

In the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, Ms. Pelosi garnered positive feelings from 21% surveyed; 35% said they felt very negatively about her. By comparison, 46% said they felt positively about the president; 27% said they felt very negative.