If Boehner is a traitor (and he certainly is to conservatives), then all the more reason why Bachmann should have stayed. She had the highest profile on any re-elected GOP house member and she let the GOP leadership get away with bullying conservative House members after the last election. She had a responsibility to rally the Tea Party caucus into an effective and powerful counterbalance to the GOP-e, if they spoke as a unified body, but at the end of the day accomplished little. All credit to her for her personal integrity as an individual House member, but she had the opportunity to do much more.
I don't know what Boehner has on her if anything. But I suppose if you realize that you will never be allowed to accomplish anything, that you're being used as a symbol only for marketing purposes, then you may just say to hell with it all and walk away.
Both Palin and Bachmann have come up against the so-called Establishment people and clearly they are regarded as a threat, not an asset. So they got out, and are running outsider attacks on the Establishment types in both parties.
Will that ever result in Conservative victories at this late date in the Death of America?
Can't say. Worth trying though.