A very smart speech by Speaker Boehner 
 
 By Ezra Klein 
 
 If you spent the afternoon watching C-SPAN, as I did, you heard applause. A lot of it. Over and over again. And when John Boehner took the podium to be sworn in as Speaker of the House of Representatives, it swelled back up, and stayed there. No one Republican member of Congress wants to be the first to stop applauding the new speaker. 
 
 Luckily, Boehner did it for them. “It’s still just me," he said with a smile. 
 
 Traditionally, politicians overpromise in these moments. If you look back to Nancy Pelosi's speech upon becoming speaker in 2007, or Newt Gingrich's speech upon becoming speaker in 1995, you'll see broad, ambitious, ideologically-charged agendas. Gingrich wanted "to find a way to truly replace the current welfare state with an opportunity society." Pelosi sought "a new America that declares our energy independence, promotes domestic sources of renewable energy, and combats climate change." 
 
 Boehner promised almost nothing at all. He certainly didn't set himself up as a foil to President Obama, or anoint himself leader of a new conservative moment in American politics. Rather, his speech had two themes: Humility, and comity. He called his chamber "the people's house," and said "we are carrying out their instructions." He spent a lot of time on the "scar tissue" that has built up under "some of the rituals that have come to characterize this institution under majorities Republican and Democratic alike." He promised a new era of openness and minority cooperation in the House. He emphasized his recognition that he held the gavel not because American liked him or his party, but because they were angry at the government and the Democrats who ran it. 
 
 It was, I think, as smart a speech as I've seen a politician give -- in part because it was savvy about what it didn't say, which is a rare virtue in Washington. Of course, the speech is the easy part. The rules Boehner is pushing through the House make it vastly easier to increase the deficit through tax cuts, an outcome that won't sit well with Boehner's repeated pledge to hold down the debt. Moreover, Republicans are already having to break their rules to pursue the repeal of health-care reform without paying for it -- a procedural offense in favor of a symbolic vote that, in addition to increasing the deficit, won't exactly usher in a new era of respect and esteem between the two parties. 
 
 That's to be expected, perhaps. Many speakers before Boehner have entered the House promising more openness and cooperation and given up on those promises when they began to conflict with more action. And Boehner himself has not always been able to "disagree without being disagreeable." It's when the going gets tough that speakers turn hard. 
 
 So we'll see. But thus far, Boehner's political instincts have been quite impressive. The White House may have a more able opponent in him than they thought. 
 
 Photo credit: Alex Brandon / AP. ||||| Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH) today delivered the following remarks to the opening session of the 112th Congress. A link to the video and the full remarks as prepared are below: 
 
 CLICK TO PLAY 
 
 “Madam Speaker, thank you for your kind words, and thank you for your service. I’d like to welcome our new colleagues and their families. My own family is here as well: my wife, Debbie, our daughters, Lindsay and Tricia; my brothers and sisters, brothers-and-sisters-in-law, and their children. 
 
 “I am honored and humbled to represent a great, hard-working community in Congress. The people of Ohio’s Eighth Congressional District continue to afford me the privilege to serve, for which I am deeply grateful. 
 
 “We gather here today at a time of great challenges. Nearly one in ten of our neighbors are looking for work. Health care costs are still rising for families and small businesses. Our spending has caught up with us, and our debt will soon eclipse the size of our entire economy. Hard work and tough decisions will be required of the 112th Congress. No longer can we fall short. No longer can we kick the can down the road. The people voted to end business as usual, and today we begin carrying out their instructions. 
 
 “In the Catholic faith, we enter into a season of service by having ashes marked on our foreheads. The ashes remind us that life in all its forms is fragile – our time on this Earth, fleeting. As the ashes are delivered, we hear those humbling words: ‘Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.’ 
 
 “The American people have humbled us. They have refreshed our memories as to just how temporary the privilege to serve is. They have reminded us that everything here is on loan from them. That includes this gavel, which I accept cheerfully and gratefully, knowing I am but its caretaker. After all, this is the people’s House. This is their Congress. It’s about them, not us. What they want is a government that is honest, accountable and responsive to their needs. A government that respects individual liberty, honors our heritage, and bows before the public it serves. 
 
 “Let’s start with the rules package the House will consider today. If passed, it will change how this institution operates, with an emphasis on real transparency, greater accountability, and a renewed focus on the Constitution. Our aim will be to give government back to the people. In seeking this goal, we will part with some of the rituals that have come to characterize this institution under majorities Republican and Democratic alike. We will dispense with the conventional wisdom that bigger bills are always better; that fast legislating is good legislating; that allowing additional amendments and open debate makes the legislative process ‘less efficient’ than our forefathers intended. 
 
 “These misconceptions have been the basis for the rituals of modern Washington. The American people have not been well served by them. Today, mindful of the lessons of the past, we open a new chapter. 
 
 “Legislators and the public will have three days to read bills before they come to a vote. Legislation will be more focused, properly scrutinized, and constitutionally sound. Committees, once bloated, will be smaller, with a renewed mission, including oversight. Old rules that have made it easy to increase spending will be replaced by new reforms that make it easier to cut spending. We will start by cutting Congress’ own budget. 
 
 
 
 “Above all else, we will welcome the battle of ideas, encourage it, and engage in it – openly, honestly, and respectfully. As the chamber closest to the people, the House works best when it is allowed to work its will. I ask all members of this body to join me in recognizing this common truth. 
 
 “To my colleagues in the majority, my message is this: we will honor our Pledge to America, built through a process of listening to the people, and we will stand firm on the Constitutional principles that built our party, and built a nation. We will do these things, however, in a manner that restores and respects the time-honored right of the minority to an honest debate and a fair, open process. 
 
 “To my friends in the minority, I offer a commitment. Openness – once a tradition of this institution, but increasingly scarce in recent decades, will be the new standard. There were no open rules in the House in the last Congress. In this one, there will be many. With this restored openness, however, will come a restored responsibility. You will not have the right to willfully disrupt the proceedings of the People's House. But you will always have the right to a robust debate in open process that allows you to represent your constituents. . .to make your case, offer alternatives, and be heard. 
 
 “In time, this framework will, I believe, restore the House of Representatives as a place where the people’s will is done. It will also, I hope, help rebuild trust among us and the people we serve, and in so doing, provide a guidepost for those who follow us in the service of our nation. 
 
 “To our new members – Democratic and Republican – as you take the oath today, I know you will do so mindful of this shared goal, and the trust placed in you by your constituents. As Speaker, I view part of my job as helping each of you do your job well, regardless of party. My hope is that every new Member – and indeed, every Member – will be comfortable approaching me with matters of the House. 
 
 “We will not always get it right. We will not always agree on what is right. A great deal of scar tissue has built up on both sides of the aisle. We cannot ignore that, nor should we. My belief has always been, we can disagree without being disagreeable to each other. That’s why it is critical this institution operate in a manner that permits a free exchange of ideas, and resolves our honest differences through a fair debate and a fair vote. We may have different – sometimes, very different – ideas for how to go about achieving the common good, but it is our shared goal. It is why we serve. 
 
 “Let us now move forward humble in our demeanor, steady in our principles, and dedicated to proving worthy of the trust and confidence that has been placed in us. If we brace ourselves to do our duty, and to do what we say we are going to do, there is no telling what together we can accomplish for the good of this great and honorable nation. More than a country, America is an idea, and it is our job to pass on to our posterity the blessings bestowed to us. 
 
 “I wish you all the very best. Welcome to the people’s House. Welcome to the 112th Congress.”
– Incoming House speakers have a long tradition of overreaching in their opening speeches, writes Ezra Klein at the Washington Post. John Boehner took the opposite approach today with his themes of "humility and comity," and that's why Klein loved it. Boehner didn't gloat on behalf of himself or his party, and he didn't set himself up as the savior of conservatives or the "foil" to the White House. He even pledged to try to heal the "scar tissue" between the parties with more openness. "It was, I think, as smart a speech as I've seen a politician give—in part because it was savvy about what it didn't say, which is a rare virtue in Washington," writes Klein. Time will tell whether he can follow through, "but thus far, Boehner's political instincts have been quite impressive. The White House may have a more able opponent in him than they thought." Click here to read the full text of Boehner's speech.