Boehner's gamble: Could it cost him his job?

[ProSense]

Boehner's gamble: Could it cost him his job?

By PATRICK O'CONNOR & JOHN BRESNAHAN | 9/30/08 4:40 AM EDT

No one risked more — for himself and for his party — on the bailout bill than House Republican leader John A. Boehner.

The result: He lost.

The Ohio Republican went all in for the $700 billion economic rescue package. But when the gavel came down on the vote Monday, 133 of Boehner’s 199 Republicans had gone the other way.

The bruising tally — coming on the heels of a weeklong revolt — had some GOP members asking privately whether Boehner can hold on to his leadership post.

Boehner said he’s confident of his job, but the vote clearly took its toll.

The leader lost the support of some of his closest allies in the House — including Iowa Rep. Tom Latham and California Rep. Devin Nunes, two drinking buddies who helped lay the foundation for Boehner’s political comeback in 2006.

Another Boehner ally, Rep. Thaddeus G. McCotter of Michigan, physically turned his back on the leader during a tense closed-door GOP conference meeting Sunday night.

People who were in the room said McCotter left abruptly after Boehner told members not to attack one another. Boehner tried to reach out to McCotter as he left. McCotter kept walking.

<...>

After Monday’s defeat, Boehner and other Republicans said a speech by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) had cost some GOP votes. In fact, some Republican aides began spreading word before her speech even ended that her remarks would turn the tide against them.

<...>

Democrats dismiss the charge as nonsense — as a Pelosi aide said, members vote on bills, not speeches.

And the fact remains that a majority of Democrats stood with Pelosi while a majority of Republicans put distance between themselves and Boehner.

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[babylonsister]

1. One can only hope, but who would replace him? And his

'drinking buddies' dissed him? :spray:

[ProSense]

2. Yeah, now if people would stop

helping the GOP spin their hissy fit as valid, this asshole will get what he deserves.

[Merlot]

3. "lost the support of some of his closest allies in the House" WFT???

I thought house members where supposed to represent the views of their constituents, not their drinking buddies.

Guess I'm naive

[Batgirl]

4. maybe this has been posted elsewhere, but

the RNC had produced ads decrying passage of the bill will in advance of yesterday's events. The RNC was doing this while their presidential nominee was going around bragging about his crucial role in getting the bill passed. If these insane lying backstabbers hadn't done so much to damage the country their villainy might be comical:

September 30, 2008
Categories: Republicans

RNC ad, was cut, sent out before package failed
The Republican National Committee's new advertisement critical of the the Wall Street "bailout" was produced and sent to television stations in key states before the package failed, officials at two stations said.

"Wall Street Squanders our money. And Washington is forced to bail them out with -- you guessed it -- our money. Can it get any worse?" asks the ad's narrator, as the words "BAILOUT WITH OUR MONEY" cross the screen. (The answer: Obama's plans would make it worse.)

The ad, however, seems to assume that it can safely attack a successful plan. And the reason may be the timing: Though it started airing this morning, the spot was released to stations yesterday morning, ad executives at stations in Michigan and Pennsylvania said.

Kae Buck of WLNS in Lansing said her station received the at at 7:55 a.m. Monday. Luanne Russell of Pittsburgh's WTAE said her station received it at 10:49 Monday morning.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0908/RNC_ad_was_cut_sent_out_before_package_failed.html?showall

[ProSense]

5. Thanks for the link. n/t