There has been a lot of recent speculation that John Boehner might give up the Speaker’s gavel, grab a lobbying job and an Augusta National Golf Club membership, and retire from Congress. There has also been some speculation about what that might mean for the country and the world and the future of the cosmos.
Without getting too deep about it, I think things will only get worse for the country if Boehner leaves, but it might help the GOP avoid some unforced errors. Let’s face it. Even in good times, the conservative movement is not built to run the federal government and oversee its many agencies and departments. It is not built solve problems or find efficiencies. It is mainly built to sell books and electronic advertising based on the idea that the federal government is bad and needs to be dismantled. Once Boehner leaves, it is a near certainty that a true movement conservative will replace him as the Republican leader in the House of Representatives.
That’s not good if you care about the performance and public popularity of the federal government, but if his replacement can stay sober past mid-afternoon and show some actual backbone once in a while, they might avoid being humiliated by their own caucus on a regular basis.