John Boehner knocks 'knuckleheads' in House Republican conference

John Boehner knocks 'knuckleheads' in House Republican conference
(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Tuesday tried to explain why he has had trouble moving legislation through the House. "You might notice I have a few knuckleheads in my conference," he told the International Franchise Association.

"On any given day, 16 of my members decide they're going to go this way, and all the sudden I have nothing," he explained, referring to right-wing members of the House who have often clashed with the speaker. The GOP's majority in the lower chamber, he said, is a "paper majority."

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Ryu Spaeth is deputy editor at TheWeek.com. Follow him on Twitter.