The former House Speaker spends most of his time on the golf course, but he's still stewing over the state of the Republican party.
Former Speaker of the House Boehner heads to the House for his last time as Speaker on October 29, 2015.
In 2015, then-Republican House Speaker John Boehner announced that he was retiring from Congress in the middle of his term, surrendering his position as the third-most-powerful politician in America to Paul Ryan and high-tailing it back to Ohio to smoke cigarettes and play golf. At the time, Boehner's abrupt resignation seemed like an acknowledgement that he’d failed as Speaker, unable to corral a growing ultra-conservative insurgency in his caucus. In retrospect, though, it appears he dodged the biggest bullet in American history: Donald Trump. With Ryan struggling to stay in step with the president, and the Republican-held government scrambling to pass any sort of meaningful legislation, Boehner's time as speaker seems downright tranquil in comparison.
Despite his remove, Boehner has been following Trump's ascendance with a critical eye. “Everything else he’s done (in office) has been a complete disaster,” the former Speaker told the Associated Press over the summer. “He’s still learning how to be president.” And as Politico discovered in a long-form interview with Boehner, the Ohio Republican is still haunted by the idea that he paved the way for Trump's takeover of the G.O.P. That idea may have some merit—he was, after all, part of the party's first wave of outsider populism when he was elected in 1994—but in over 18 hours of conversation with Politico’s Tim Alberta, Boehner, now golfing frequently and ironing his underwear in peace, opened up about his frustration with today's Republican party:
On Trump's impact:
When I ask Boehner whether the Republican Party can survive this, he cuts me off. “There is no Rep—.” He stops himself. “You were about to say, ‘There is no Republican Party,’” I tell him. He shrugs. “There is. But what does it even mean? Donald Trump’s not a Republican. He’s not a Democrat. He’s a populist. He doesn’t have an ideological bone in his body.” So who, I ask, is the leader of the party? “There is nobody,” he says.
On Ryan's legislative prowess
“So I get a text from 43 about a month ago, maybe six weeks ago.” Boehner’s close friend Ed, who joined our nightcap, interjects: “Off the record?” Boehner waves him off: “It doesn’t matter.” He lets out a thick cough, smoke escaping his mouth, and continues. “So 43 says, ‘Hey, are you talking to Ryan? Are you giving him advice?’ I said, ‘Yeah, if he calls I give him advice.’” Boehner takes a long, satisfied drag. “And he texts me back: ‘He needs to call you more.’”
On the House Freedom Caucus, whose members at times have stubbornly resisted the G.O.P.'s legislative agenda:
“They can’t tell you what they’re for. They can tell you everything they’re against. They’re anarchists. They want total chaos. Tear it all down and start over. That’s where their mindset is.”
On Freedom Caucus co-founder Rep. Mark Meadows:
“He’s an idiot. I can’t tell you what makes him tick.”
On Freedom Caucus co-founder Rep. Jim Jordan:
“Jordan was a terrorist as a legislator going back to his days in the Ohio House and Senate … A terrorist. A legislative terrorist.”
On former House Oversight Committee chairman Jason Chaffetz:
Boehner’s beef with Chaffetz, who would later join Fox News as a paid contributor, is not personal—just that he’s a “total phony” who possessed legislative talent but focused mostly on self-promotion. “With Chaffetz,” Boehner says, “it’s always about Chaffetz.”
On Jordan and Chaffetz, combined:
“Fuck Jordan. Fuck Chaffetz. They’re both assholes.”
On Trey Gowdy, current House Oversight Committee chairman:
“Gowdy — that’s my guy, even though he doesn’t know how to dress.”
On who's to blame for today's deep partisan divide:
“People thought in ’09, ’10, ’11, that the country couldn’t be divided more. And you go back to Obama’s campaign in 2008, you know, he was talking about the divide and healing the country and all of that. And some would argue on the right that he did more to divide the country than to unite it. I kind of reject that notion.” Why is that? “Because it wasn’t him!” Boehner replies. “It was modern-day media, and social media, that kept pushing people further right and further left. People started to figure out … they could choose where to get their news. And so what do people do? They choose places they agree with, reinforcing the divide.”
#1: Tooconservative To: hondo68 (#0)
Isn't it amazing just how much Boehner and Dumbya are now beloved by the national media if they dish some anti-Trump remarks?
Tooconservative posted on 2017-10-30 20:03:18 Reply Private Reply
#2: Hondo68 To: Tooconservative, too good at golf, Boehner (#1)
Boehner was fired because he's a better golfer than Trump.
Sure, teh Donald can beat Bill Clinton, Ruby Giuliani, and maybe Hillary on the golf course, but it would be embarrassing to lose to a drunken lout like Boehner.
Hondo68 posted on 2017-10-30 22:04:33 Reply Private Reply
#3: Tooconservative To: hondo68 (#2)
Tooconservative posted on 2017-10-30 22:41:37 Reply Private Reply
#4: VxH To: hondo68 (#0)
Go cry a river Bonetard, you L.I.F.E.R. arse-hole.
VxH posted on 2017-10-30 22:46:59 Reply Private Reply
#5: Hank Rearden To: hondo68 (#0)
Keerist, I wish McStain and Bonerboy would just die and finally leave us the hell alone instead of continuing to steal taxpayers' money to live their dissolute, corrupt lives.
Hank Rearden posted on 2017-10-31 00:48:24 Reply Private Reply