House Speaker John Boehner to resign at end of October
(Worthy News) – House Speaker John A. Boehner, faced with a constant conservative rebellion, announced Friday he will step down at the end of October, a move that shocked Capitol Hill and exposed the deep tensions within the Republican Party over how to use its congressional majority.
Boehner’s nearly five-year hold on the speaker’s gavel had grown increasingly unsteady amid threats from more than 30 Republicans that they would force a no-confidence vote in his speaker’s position, which would have forced him to rely on Democratic votes in order to remain in charge.
Conservatives have pushed Boehner (R-Ohio) and his leadership team to take a more confrontational approach with President Obama over issues such as government spending, abortion, immigration and Obamacare, a stance that more moderate Republicans argue is completely unrealistic in a divided government. [ Source ]
Resignation triggers all-out leadership scramble
Speaker John Boehner’s resignation has set off an intense round of jockeying for all four House leadership slots, setting up what’s expected to be a hypercompetitive internal party battle in the middle of a key stretch of the legislative session this fall.
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is expected to run for speaker, and no other Republican has come forward to challenge him yet. The most formidable potential rival for the top spot, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), said Friday he will not run.
Though McCarthy is the heavy favorite to succeed Boehner, who announced Friday that he would step down at the end of October, it’s unlikely he’ll be unopposed.[ Source ]