Rare News Desk
Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas decided not to run for a GOP leadership role in the U.S. House of Representatives — at least not for now. The Hill reports that Hensarling hasn’t ruled out a bid for the speaker’s position, and would likely be Speaker John Boehner’s biggest threat should he decide to run.
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Hensarling and Rep. Raul Labrador of Idaho, who unsuccessfully challenged the more moderate Kevin McCarthy for the majority leader’s role, apparently disagreed on the best strategy. Labrador thought this would be the best time to shake up the House leadership, because after the election Boehner will be able to trade votes for plum committee assignments.
I have been told that there are perhaps 50 to 60 GOP conservatives who would vote for a different speaker if a viable candidate tossed in his (or her) hat. Jeb could be just such a candidate, especially if conservatives pick up a number of seats in November.
Why would Hensarling make a good speaker?
- He is a principled conservative. Hensarling is one of the most principled conservatives in the House, with a lifetime ACU rating of 97.79. His efforts at fiscal restraint earned him the title of “budget nanny.”
- He is respected by the other side. Party leaders need to be able communicate and work with their own members as well as leaders from the other party, even when they disagree. And they should have established a certain amount of trust that agreements made in private will be honored in public. Hensarling has developed that reputation as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.
- He is knowledgeable. Those who work with members of Congress learn pretty quickly that some of our elected officials are not, shall we say, detailed policy people. They often don’t know much (or anything) about the policies they are sponsoring or trying to pass—something that was abundantly evident when Obamacare passed.
- But you cannot say that about Hensarling; he knows his stuff. He studied economics under Professor Steven Pejovich at Texas A&M, and he was a staffer for Senator Phil Gramm, a Ph.D. economist and one of the brightest and more conservative members of the Senate.
- He’s from Texas. All other things being equal, being from a large, heavily populated, wealthy state is better than being from a small one. Even The Hill cited being from Texas as a Hensarling asset. There is a lot of money in Texas, and one of the best ways to draw that money out is to have members in leadership roles.
- His election would send Team Obama a message. That Republicans are finally getting serious about shrinking government, reducing spending and getting to the bottom of all the scandals.
Not that long ago, Texas Republicans dominated Congress: Dick Armey was House majority leader, Tom Delay was the House whip, and Bill Archer was chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. The House has not been as effective since they left.
A Jeb Hensarling leadership role could reignite that principled conservatism.
