House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-OH) plan to go forward with a clean debt ceiling extension reportedly drew a frosty reaction from his Republican colleagues.
The Washington Post’s intrepid Robert Costa has the details from the House GOP’s private Capitol Hill breakfast on Tuesday.
Boehner’s delivery was crisp; his decision was final.
The room of Republicans sat up, stunned that Boehner was abruptly shifting away from the leadership’s plan, which had been championed 12 hours earlier at a Monday night meeting in the Capitol basement. But there were no outcries or boos. A few members whispered to each other that Boehner was right, that due to conservative opposition to any hike, he was cornered.
But they didn’t speak up or clap. Boehner just stood there for a moment after he finished, eyed the room, and walked toward his seat. On his way there, Boehner shook his head, then turned to the nearly mute crowd and wondered aloud why he wasn’t getting applause. “I’m getting this monkey off your back and you’re not going to even clap?” Boehner asked, scowling playfully at some tea-party favorites.
The House passed the debt limit hike on Tuesday, immediately drawing outrage from outside conservative groups.
