Christmas comes early for Conservatives

I'm doing my happy dance. John Boehner has resigned as Speaker of the House of Representatives! I have advocated this for the last few years and finally my dream comes true. I will guess that he resigned "to spend more time with his family". The real reason couldn't be the fact that he has failed miserably at the job and completely ignored his conservative base. It can't have anything to do with the constant pressure applied by that same base of voters who had turned on him over his absolute reluctance to advance any conservative policies. Regardless of the reason for his resignation, rejoice in the fact he will be gone on October 31st.

With him out it may now be harder for Obama to move his destructive agenda forward. He will need to go back to using his phone and his pen to maintain the same level of achievement that he enjoyed under Boehner's leadership. Even many Democrats were opposing Obama on several of the things he floated but his pal Boehner always came to his rescue. I will admit that the liberal opposition may have been just a ruse to trick Boehner into helping Obama but neither scenario reflects well on the Speaker. On the other hand, Boehner supporters have stated that the Speaker will be very busy tying up some loose ends (read: Obama's agenda) before he  leaves the Speaker's office. I say that with all confidence based on the fact that Boehner has been extremely vindictive concerning members that rejected his leadership in the past. I just hope he has a non-vindictive last month and doesn't take out his anger on the American people.

In the unlikely case that the President and Vice President were to be incapacitated or worse, the Speaker of the House is next in line to be President. That makes the selection of that position very important. For that reason and several equally important reasons the House has to be careful who's butt they put in that seat next. I list below most of the names of Representatives that have indicated interest in the position. If you have paid attention to my past rants you know you will now have to endure more sarcasm and cynicism as I give some comments about each individual.

Kevin McCarthy of  California has stepped forward. He is Boehner's second in command now. He seems to be a reasonably competent Conservative but he is from California: strike one. He opposed Boehner in the last Speaker election so there may be some redeeming qualities in the man. He lost but still managed to get the second chair under Boehner. They must have kissed and made up because Boehner has stated he hoped Kevin would succeed him as Speaker. An endorsement from Boehner is strike two. I believe an endorsement from Boehner at this point would be toxic to anyone. You don't think Boehner knows that and is extracting revenge for Kevin's earlier disrespect? Nah! At any rate Kevin has only one strike to go.

Paul Ryan of Wisconsin is another name that has been put forward. He did not impress me with his failed attempt at VP with Romney in 2012. He is an establishment Republican and will surely continue in the current Speaker's footsteps. A complete non-starter for me, and not even worth discussing.

David Webster of Florida will be the next name I reject. He has some good Conservative qualities but he has been endorsed in the past by Jeb Bush and Mike Huckabee. He must have some RINO skeletons in his closet if he is endorsed by those two. To me, those two are also toxic endorsements.

I have been impressed with some of Pete Sessions (TX) recent anti-amnesty and illegal immigration policies. Those are of big-time importance to me. He has had his share of political faux pas in the past but his advocacy against amnesty goes a long way to mitigate them. If he were to achieve the position of Speaker we will know quickly where his loyalties lie: advance Conservative principles or fall in line with the RINO policy of spineless leadership.

Steve Scalice of Louisiana is a career politician that has announced his run for the Speaker job. He has been in politics since he was 30 or so either in the Louisiana legislature or the US Congress. I can't quite grasp the concept of his political agenda other than to conclude he is just another Beltway RINO that likes the free ride afforded him by the US taxpayers.  By the way, he has been supported in the past by John Boehner so he loses another step in my opinion.

Cathy McMorris Rodgers from the state of Washington is another name that has surfaced in the crowded leadership race. She entered politics immediately after college in 1991 and has done nothing but politics since. She served in the Washington State House from 1994 until 2005. Career politician anyone? She has put forth some Conservative views such as anti-abortion and anti-gay marriage. I have nothing bad to say about Cathy except having been born,  raised and basked in the left coast sunshine her entire life I would hesitate to say she has avoided all the liberal influence she has had to wade through all those years.

Tom Price of Georgia is the last one I will discuss. I saved him for last because I wanted to spend a little more time on him. He was an orthopedic surgeon for 20 years prior to running for his first political position in 1996. He is now approaching 20 years in politics but he has maintained  good Conservative ideologies from the beginning giving him a somewhat legitimate pass on the career politician stigma. He has a good Conservative voting record. He opposes abortion, never-ending wasteful entitlements, gun control, and a host of other liberal/socialist policies. He is pro military and pro one man/one woman marriage. He wants the federal government out of farming. He has openly opposed any global warming legislation that would require additional taxes confiscated from taxpayers. In 2005 he sponsored legislation to stop illegal border crossings on a set date. He sponsored legislation to create performance-based compensation systems for teachers. I agree with the premise of that type of system but it should be done by the states and not the federal government. He attempted to amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to allow employers to require their employees to speak decent English as a prerequisite to employment. He sponsored a bill to repeal TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) and require the allocated funds be used to pay down the national debt. I agree with most of his proposals.

As an orthopedic surgeon Price just might be the right man to surgically implant some much needed support to the limp-spined RINOs in Washington DC. Does it make sense that a doctor might be the needed prescription to treat the backbone issues that afflict the Washington elite? We won't have long to wait for that answer.

One worthless leader down and one to go. Look out McConnell, they will be after you next. Let the fun begin. Get this behind us so we can concentrate on putting an adult back the White House

God Bless America!!!