Conservative Reps Say God Told Them To Spare Boehner From Coup

House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI), Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Ways & Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI).
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) survived a potential coup from his own caucus in January due to what some conservative lawmakers are attributing to divine intervention.

After Boehner’s fiscal cliff negotiations rankled many Republicans in the House, talk turned to possibly replacing the Ohio Republican. But, according to a report published online Monday in the Washington Post, the effort “quickly fell apart when several Republicans, after a night of prayer, said God told them to spare the speaker.”

Rep. Steve Southerland II (R-FL) told the Post that he read the Old Testament the night before the vote for the speakership. 

From WaPo:

He read the story of Saul and David, as the king of Israel tried to kill the future king. David wins and, with a chance to kill the king, decides to spare Saul.

Southerland woke up convinced that Boehner should be spared. Others, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said they, too, prayed before siding with Boehner.

“He’s not a God of chaos, he’s a God of order,” Southerland said.

Latest Livewire
Comments
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Associate Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: