John Boehner stood before the packed House chamber; its members and their families were giving him a standing ovation. He took out a handkerchief and wiped the tears from his eyes – he always hated about himself that he’s prone to crying at important moments – and waved his audience to their seats. “I’m still just me,” he …
John Boehner
John Boehner Elected Speaker
The House just completed its vote, electing John Boehner the 61st Speaker of the House 241-192.
The most interesting part of the vote were the defections from Nancy Pelosi, who garnered 173 votes:
-11 Democrats voted for Heath Shuler, a North Carolina Democrat and former Washington Redskin who had said he would challenge Pelosi in …
Day 1: 112th Congress
The opening ceremonies have begun. The House is just finishing up the first vote of its 112th adjournment, a quorum call to ensure everyone’s present. The Capitol is brimming to full. Members lead families and friends on tours. Red coated docents are practically swallowed by the crowds under the dome. The Cannon rotunda is packed all the …
Sock Puppet Theater: The House Passes Bill to Make Bush’s Middle Class Tax Cuts Permenant
The House today passed 234-188 a permanent extension of Bush’s tax cuts for those making $250,000 or less. A handful of Dems – mostly moderates and surviving Blue Dogs — defected and voted against the measure, which was, essentially, sock puppet theater for the benefit of the Democratic base. Even if the Senate takes a similar vote, …
Bi-Monthly Slurpees
The day after the election, President Obama announced that he and congressional leaders would sit down and hash things out on Nov. 18th. If you listen to Republicans on the Hill, that was a premature announcement: they’d liked to have been consulted first before picking a date. If you ask Democrats, that’s poppycock: Obama moved his …
Morning Must Reads: Game
(White House/Pete Souza)
–Jim DeMint wins the earmarks game; Minority Leader McConnell and President Obama embrace the porkatorium.
–Nate Silver thinks Tim Pawlenty is too forgettable to be the GOP’s next presidential nominee.
–Jonathan Bernstein thinks Mitt Romney and Sarah Palin are overrated.
–Newt Gingrich sticks …
(Over?)Learning the Lessons from Gingrich
Michael Grunwald and I teamed up to write this week’s cover story, a profile of the speaker-in-waiting, John Boehner.
It was striking in trying to coax Boehner into speaking to us – he never did – how much he wanted to avoid the limelight. The victory, his staff said, was not about him, but about a movement and about Barack …
Scene: The GOP’s Non-Party Victory Party
Heading into the elections, John Boehner didn’t want to have a victory party. “This is not a time for celebration. Not when one in 10 of our fellow citizens are out of work. Not when we have buried our children under a mountain of debt. Not when our Congress is held in such low esteem,” he told the crowd tonight. “We can …
