Nancy Pelosi: Democrats shouldn't attend Charlotte convention

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is encouraging Democratic members of Congress to stay home and campaign instead of traveling to Charlotte to attend the party’s national convention.

“I’m not encouraging anyone to go to the convention, having nothing to do with anything except I think they should stay home, campaign in their districts, use their financial and political resources to help them win their election,” Pelosi told POLITICO.

More than a dozen Democratic members have announced they plan to stay home for the convention, including Sens. Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Jon Tester of Montana.

North Carolina Democratic Reps. Mike McIntyre and Larry Kissell have said they’re unsure whether they’ll join Obama for his nomination ceremony at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. McIntyre said he’ll be there for the first day of the convention, but maybe not when the balloons drop.

Pelosi, a California Democrat, said there is less of a need for Democrats to attend the convention since he is an incumbent.

“We’re very proud of him,” she told POLITICO. “There certainly will be enough people there to express that pride, but I’m not encouraging members to go to the convention no matter what the situation was, because they can be home. It’s campaign time. It’s the first week in September,” she said.