At a luncheon in Texas today, Speaker of the House John Boehner refused to pledge that he will serve another full term as speaker because he literally thinks he is going to die soon.
According to Politico:
The Ohio Republican, speaking to a luncheon here sponsored by a group of local chambers of commerce, said he can’t “predict what’s going to happen,” and stopped short of fully committing to serving another full two-year term.
“Listen, I’m going to be 65-years-old in November,” Boehner said. “I never thought I’d live to be 60. So I’m living on borrowed time.”
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With an attitude like that, it is pretty easy to see why John Boehner probably drinks alone. The last few years have been rough for the Speaker of the House. Boehner finally achieved his dream job only to wake up and realize that he is leading a group of Republicans that can’t agree with each other on anything. Boehner did initially try to teach the tea crowd how this whole government thing works, but after many failures, he eventually gave up and just started reading the script that his tea party hostage takers placed in front of him.
The fact that he has stopped trying to pretend to lead the House is how the government shutdown happened. It’s how the country’s debt rating got lowered, and it is also why there will be a special committee to investigate Benghazi. Boehner played a big role in creating his own mess by willingly leaping into bed with the tea party only to find out later that the bed was on fire.
John Boehner has been without a doubt one of the worst Speakers in American history. Under his non-leadership, the House has dissolved into chaos. Boehner has regularly placed keeping his speakership ahead of doing what is right for the country. It is John Boehner’s fault that the legislative process is completely dysfunctional to the point where major accomplishment is impossible. John Boehner may live to be 100, but he is signaling that the end is near for his time in Congress.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
