Speaker John Boehner to resign from Congress in October

John Boehner announces retirement.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Speaker John Boehner has announced through his office's aides that he will step down as House speaker and resign from Congress at the end of October. Boehner's resignation follows weeks of intense criticism by conservatives over the possibility of a government shutdown amid talks of defunding Planned Parenthood. Florida Rep. John Mica told CBS on Friday that Boehner "just does not want to become the issue. Some people have tried to make him the issue, both in Congress and outside."

Boehner has had a rocky relationship with the right wing of his House caucus for years, having taken over the speakership after the GOP's historic midterm rout of Democrats in 2010. He has become an object of contempt among many leading conservative voices over what they see as his failure to stick to conservative principles and score larger victories over Democrats. Upon news of Boehner's resignation, leading conservative Erick Erickson tweeted, "YAY!!!!!! Boehner is resigning."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.