Zippety Dooda

Last Friday John Boehner came to the podium singing Zippety Dooda and announced his resignation as Speaker of the House. He's sang this to the press before but this time there was an abundance of joy in his voice. He will vacate the Speakerhip and his Congressional seat on October 30 and who could blame him.

Boehner has been in the U.S. House of Representatives for twenty-five years, five as Speaker. Climbing to that ultimate position of power is what many members hope to achieve but for Boehner it has certainly not been a time of joy. He has had about 30 members of his caucus who have no interest in governing the country they simply wish to be obstructionists. They arrived in 2010 as Tea Party newbies that helped deliver the House back to Republican control. They now call themselves the Freedom Caucus. Their my way or the highway attitude has disrupted the nation's business and presented John Boehner with a massive headache.

Boehner is a conservative but also someone that understands that in a democracy you must negotiate and compromise in order to achieve public policy. He has been blocked and constantly under siege by this very loud  demagogic group. They have said he isn't conservative enough, which is truly ridiculous and constantly threatened his Speakership even though they have no clear leader themselves or the numbers to pull off a coup. Boehner has not wanted to put legislation on the floor for a vote which would require Democratic support to succeed even if he felt it was best for the country as a whole, this was a mistake. He should have followed his own instincts and forced his caucus to put up or shut up. In not doing so he has let an unreasonable group harm the country. Why don't the larger number of Republican Representatives not silence these troublemakers? Because they are afraid of being primaried, to be labeled a squishy conservative and removed by a far right wing candidate even if it means handing a safe seat to the opposition party.

All indicators point to Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy becoming the next Speaker. He has virtually no legislative achievements to his tenure as a Congressman but rose quickly in the leadership. He also played a role in recruiting many of those new Tea Party members in 2010. Will he do better as Speaker of the House? Not likely. His little creations will be biting his ass everyday. The only voice who could challenge him and probably beat him for the Speakership is Paul Ryan but he says he won't seek it because that job is for someone that doesn't have small children. It's a good excuse but the reality is Ryan knows that the House is ungovernable at this point.

The next Speaker may come to regret taking on the job and may not last long in it.