http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/199704-boehner-ill-run-for-speaker-againMarch 03, 2014, 12:08 pm
Boehner: I'll run for Speaker again
By Russell Berman
Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) plans to run for reelection as Speaker after the November elections, telling his hometown newspaper Monday that his standing within the Republican Conference is as strong as it has ever been.
The Speaker’s future is a topic of constant speculation in Washington, and the recent retirement of several of his close friends, as well as his decision to buy a condo in Florida, has renewed talk that he will soon step down.
But Boehner, 64, who has already filed to run for reelection to his House seat, told the Cincinnati Enquirer that he wants to keep the Speaker’s gavel for another two years.
“I think I’m in better shape with my own caucus than I have ever been in the last three years,” he said.
Boehner said his purchase of property in Florida “has nothing to do with my future.”
Some Republican lawmakers said Boehner solidified his internal position during last fall’s fiscal showdown, when he waged a losing battle that resulted in a government shutdown after conservatives balked when he and the GOP leadership had sought a way out of the crisis.
Outside conservative groups are still calling for his ouster, and after narrowly surviving a revolt in early 2013, Boehner could face defections in 2015, if not an outright challenge.
