WASHINGTON (AP) – The gulf between tea party conservatives and establishment Republicans has grown so wide that it just swallowed up the speaker of the House and may threaten the entire Republican Party and Congress itself.
The question now is whether anyone can tame the House’s rabble-rousing faction, following Speaker John Boehner’s decision to resign rather than face a possible vote to depose him. The stakes are sky-high, given the critical deadlines looming to keep the government running and raise the nation’s borrowing limit.
Yet with the GOP presidential contest riding an anti-establishment wave, it’s become practically compulsory for the candidates to denounce Republican congressional leaders at the first sign of compromise. That makes deal-making that much tougher in Congress – even as some fear it could harm the party’s chances at the White House.
The long-running drama of establishment vs. insurgency played out anew Friday on Capitol Hill as tea party conservatives cheered Boehner’s announcement that he will leave his job at the end of October. The move will ensure that the government stays open into December because the 13-term Ohio lawmaker rejected conservative demands to dare President Barack Obama to veto a government spending bill that cuts money for Planned Parenthood.
But Boehner’s announcement only puts off that fight and others, and promises a chaotic leadership struggle that may result in new leaders facing the same fundamental problem: a core group of 30 or so conservative lawmakers repulsed by compromise and commanding enough votes to stymie leadership plans, despite the GOP’s large majority.