PD Editorial: John Boehner bows out. But what now?

“By ousting a good man like Speaker Boehner - someone who understood the art of compromise - the party of Eisenhower and Reagan is no more.”

- Tweet Friday morning by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nevada?

One did not have to agree with the politics of House Speaker John A. Boehner to see him as something of a sympathetic figure in the nation’s capital where he was often at the center of pitched battles. And that was just within his own party.

Under relentless pressure from the right wing of the Republican Party to use its House majority in ways to pursue a more conservative agenda, Boehner faced another major confrontation this month as the tea party fringe was poised to force a senseless government shutdown over the defunding of Planned Parenthood. Meanwhile, more than 30 Republicans had threatened to force a no-confidence vote on Boehner, which would have required him to get Democratic support to stay in the position he has held for nearly five years.

How he would handle that drama was laid to rest on Friday when the Ohio representative suddenly announced his decision to step down at the end of October. Boehner said it had become clear that “this prolonged leadership turmoil would do irreparable harm to the institution.”

In some ways, it comes as little surprise. His announcement came just a day after a historic papal address to a joint session of Congress, something Boehner has been trying to orchestrate for years and, according to friends and colleagues, came with deep spiritual meaning to him. But there’s also some sense of pessimism as it also comes just a day after Pope Francis encouraged lawmakers to put aside their differences to work together in addressing the needs of the common man. The pope called on Congress to seek “effective solutions rather than getting bogged down in discussions.”

At least in the near term, that appears unlikely, as conservatives reportedly received the news with applause.

So the question becomes, what now?

Boehner’s likely successor is House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, who has been in office less than 10 years. While he appears to have broad support in the party, it’s not clear whether he has the experience and fortitude to broker the kind of deals needed to get past the political stalemates that have stymied Washington.

The good news is that, at least for the time being, a government shutdown is likely to be avoided. House Republicans say there’s an agreement to pass a clean spending bill to keep the government in operation until mid-December. What happens after that is anybody’s guess.

In referencing the 150th anniversary of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, someone who “labored tirelessly” to keep the nation whole, the pope reminded the members of Congress that “building a future of freedom requires love of the common good and cooperation in a spirit of subsidiarity and solidarity.”

But given that the House will be entering an election year with a new speaker and, apparently, a new resolve by conservatives to push harder for their agenda, such construction appears unlikely.