A few weeks ago, John Boehner surprised everyone and announced that he is retiring from Congress. This came unexpectedly even though many conservatives, especially the Tea Party wanted him out. The big question now is who will be his successor? For a while, Kevin McCarthy was thought to be the front runner, but he eventually withdrew his bid. That leaves Republican Paul Ryan as many conservatives' favorite. Paul Ryan is 45, popular, and even members of the Freedom Caucus (some of the most conservative members in Congress) said they would willingly support him. The fact that the Freedom Caucus is supportive of Paul Ryan is very interesting, considering they were part of driving Boehner out of Congress, and blocking McCarthy as a candidate.
It seems as though Ryan has everything falling into place, and is a contrast to Boehner in many ways. He presents a fresh face, who is young and more lively. He has even made sure that if he does become Speaker of the House some things change, like not letting a single member of the House be able to file a motion to remove the Speaker.
Even with the support of the Republicans, do you think that the conservatives will try and use him as a puppet to get what they want, a similar force that drove out Boehner? If he wins, do you think he will try and compromise with Democrats to get work done, or will he be intimidated by the conservatives? Finally, what is your thought on how well Paul Ryan will be as Speaker of the House?
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/23/us/politics/house-gop-factions-lining-up-for-paul-ryan-as-speaker.html
Good questions. Paul Ryan is interesting- very knowledgeable about policy & specific financial aspects of relevant topics - possibly open to working across the aisle. However, D.C. Is still toxic, hard to be hopeful...
ReplyDeleteI think that if Ryan has the support of the conservative groups, such groups have the intention of using him as a puppet for their intentions. Therefore, it is up to him and how he decides to react to their intentions that will decide his place as Speaker of the House. If democrats take the majority, he will likely try to compromise with them, but if republics have the majority, he will probably maintain their ideals in the way he runs the House.
ReplyDeleteI think that Ryan will probably gladly serve as a puppet for the conservatives. He may be open to working with democrats in Congress but is fairly conservative in his views and probably wishes to extend the domination of Republicans in Congress.
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