House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio shocked Capitol Hill on September 25 with a sudden announcement that he will retire from Congress at the end of October. Boehner’s decision came after weeks of clashes with House conservatives who favored stronger restrictions against funding for Planned Parenthood, even as Boehner and other Republicans argued that such restrictions would never become law in the face of either a Senate filibuster or a veto from President Obama.
The series of events that led to Speaker Boehner’s resignation can be traced to late July when Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) filed a motion to vacate the chair, an obscure procedure that would force the House to vote on whether Boehner would remain in power. One of the House’s most conservative members, Meadows charged in the motion that Boehner “uses the power of the office to punish Members who vote according to their conscience,” and “uses the legislative calendar to create crises for the American People, in order to compel Members to vote for legislation.”
Rep. Meadows was expected to force a vote on the motion as early as the end of September, just as the House was expected to be in the midst of a debate over a continuing resolution (CR) to provide federal funding into the 2016 fiscal year. Meanwhile, other House conservatives threatened to block any funding measure that included dollars for Planned Parenthood, even if it led to a government shutdown.
Boehner’s decision to retire will avert a vote on Rep. Meadows’ motion, and potentially diffuse the immediate battle over Planned Parenthood funding in the CR. With Boehner stepping aside, conservatives will have an opportunity later in October to cast a vote for a new speaker who may take a harder line against Democrats. As a result, they may be willing to back a short-term CR that avoids a government shutdown – while postponing the next Planned Parenthood battle until after the new speaker is in place.