Boehner's Losing Gamble May Cost Him His Job
Boehner's Losing Gamble May Cost Him His Job
Boehner's Losing Gamble May Cost Him His Job#1
Posted: 9/30/08 at 8:15am
Looks like it's not Pelosi who will be "impeached," but House Minority Leader John Boner.
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POLITICO.COM
Boehner's gamble: Could it cost him his job?
By: Patrick O'Connor and John Bresnahan
September 30, 2008 07:28 AM EST
No one risked more — for himself and for his party — on the bailout bill than House Republican leader John A. Boehner.
The result: He lost.
The Ohio Republican went all in for the $700 billion economic rescue package. But when the gavel came down on the vote Monday, 133 of Boehner’s 199 Republicans had gone the other way.
The bruising tally — coming on the heels of a weeklong revolt — had some GOP members asking privately whether Boehner can hold on to his leadership post.
Boehner said he’s confident of his job, but the vote clearly took its toll.
The leader lost the support of some of his closest allies in the House — including Iowa Rep. Tom Latham and California Rep. Devin Nunes, two drinking buddies who helped lay the foundation for Boehner’s political comeback in 2006.
Another Boehner ally, Rep. Thaddeus G. McCotter of Michigan, physically turned his back on the leader during a tense closed-door GOP conference meeting Sunday night.
People who were in the room said McCotter left abruptly after Boehner told members not to attack one another. Boehner tried to reach out to McCotter as he left. McCotter kept walking.
“I have some members who would do anything for me, and I talked to them, and it just killed me, absolutely killed me, when they told me they couldn’t vote yes,” Boehner told a small group of reporters after Monday’s stunning floor defeat.
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POLITICO.COM: Boehner's gamble: Could it cost him his job?
re: Boehner's Losing Gamble May Cost Him His Job#2
Posted: 9/30/08 at 8:40am
PJ--I believe that Boehner took a calculated risk. He needs to get re-elected in Nov. He was in an awkward position. The leadership is supposed to protect the rank-and-file at re-election time from having to cast a vote in favor of a toxic bill. As House Minority leader he had no cover and had to take heed to the calls of his constituency.
A side note is that Obama is having a tough time gaining traction in OH, PA, MI and WI still due to the bailout primarily and the demographics of those old states with decreasing populations.
My sources from OH indicate that Boehner has some designs on the OH governorship as well. The current governor Ted Strickland used the House as a springboard.
Another term in the House positions Boehner within striking distance of Strickland 2 years out. And he's only 58 so 2 more years in the House and a term as OH governor would make him only 66 and a prime candidate for the GOP nomination for POTUS 8 yrs out. By 2016, he'd theorectically be in his 2nd term as OH governor, provided he takes Strickland out in 2 years. Think about it.
re: Boehner's Losing Gamble May Cost Him His Job#2
Posted: 9/30/08 at 8:43amFrankly, I think the leaders for both parties in both the House and the Senate should be replaced. Congress has a difficult, if not impossible task of re-establishing trust, and that task may be a little easier with new leadership.
re: Boehner's Losing Gamble May Cost Him His Job#3
Posted: 9/30/08 at 8:53am
MB--Sometimes, better the devil you know than the devil you don't.
I don't want to see either Boehner or Pelosi removed from their leadership positions with a new Congress coming on board come Jan.
That said, I suspect an ambitious member of her own party who voted "nay" on the bailout bill will go after her post with a vengeance. Pelosi is severely wounded and Harry Reid is treading on thin ice in the Senate.
Remember Tom Daschle?
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