Posted on 02/02/2006 12:20:43 PM PST by thegreatbeast
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Rep. John Boehner of Ohio upset a former deputy to indicted Texan Tom DeLay on Thursday to become majority leader of the scandal-rocked U.S. House of Representatives.
Rep. Roy Blunt had appeared to be the front-runner, based on a long list of public commitments, but Boehner, who campaigned on a vow to seek to renew the party's "spirit and vision," defeated Blunt and Rep. John Shadegg of Arizona in a secret election by fellow Republicans.
Boehner had 122 votes to Blunt's 109. Shadegg dropped out after a first ballot loss.
Boehner's election represented a shake-up in the House leadership, as Republicans effectively gave a vote of no-confidence to Blunt, the acting majority leader and a close ally of DeLay.
But Blunt will remain in the House Republican leadership, holding onto his job as majority whip, the person responsible for making sure Republican-backed bills pass the House.
Blunt became acting majority leader in September after DeLay was forced under House Republican rules to step down when he was indicted in Texas on campaign-related felony charges.
In January, DeLay, under pressure from members, announced he would not seek to reclaim the job after lobbyist Jack Abramoff, a close associate, pleaded guilty in a mushrooming influence-peddling investigation that threatens the Republicans hold on Congress.
I was a Boehner supporter before Shadegg got in.
It makes no difference who is the Engineer on the train of conservatism, so congratulation to the GOP team for selecting a leader and not a mouse.
In California we need help the fight the crazy, liberal, sex-addicts that have taken over the Democrats. They have been successful pushing their sex-addict agenda into every phase of our community life. Example is AB 606, 50 and others.
Send us reinforcements from the Red States.
A bather whose clothing was strewed
By breezes that left her quite nude,
..Saw a man come along
..And, unless I am wrong,
You expected this line to be rude.
RINO!
No, you're right, I should have searched by his name too. The other thread is now a monster with hundreds of replies.
Being Maj/Min leader is as political a game as anything else---calling in chits, making pals over the long haul, not offending certain people's agendas and priorities. It's NOT entirely about pushing the Republican agenda through, because everyone in the caucus doesn't have the same agenda (i.e., Chris Shays).
So true, one wonders how anything ever gets done in Washington with all the private "agenda's" going on.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.