With the change in Congressional power, it’s not hard to feel like Boehner’s potential move to Speaker of the House could be eerily similar to another point in history. In 1925, Republican Nicholas Longworth became the Speaker of the House in circumstances similar to Boehner.
Both Longworth and Boehner are from Cincinnati, however from different socio-economic backgrounds.
Boehner has said that he would like to model himself after Longworth, who promised to provide more power to committee chairman. But, in the end, Longworth found out that it wasn’t so easy.
As Speaker of the House, Longworth pushed for small government and passed legislation hoping to balance budgets through major tax cuts.
Historically both Ohioans were known for “reaching across the aisle,” as well as their pro-business approach.
David Stebenne, a political historian, says that Boehner will operate in an environment even more challenging than Longworth. “If elected Speaker, Boehner will be in a difficult position because most of the new GOP members will be very hostile to allowing any tax increases and strongly in favor of big budget cuts – both of which won’t garner much Democratic support in the Senate or White House. With the Democrats maintaining control of the Senate, a GOP-led House could be a formula for gridlock in Washington.
Paul Beck, professor of political science says, “If elected Speaker, Boehner’s major challenge will be to deal with, maybe even working with, a Democratic President – and a still-Democratic Senate. It will take great political skills to both please the most conservative members of his House party caucus (some of whom won their seats with Tea Party support) and position the House party as a responsible partner with others in Washington in addressing the nation’s pressing problems.
Professor Stebenne can be reached at 614-292-5359 or Stebenne.1@osu.edu.
Professor Beck can be reached at 614-292-7087 or Beck.9@osu.edu
