I think the Pope's visit and…more importantly…his message..had a profound impact on Boehner. No doubt, Boehner reached a point when he could no longer deny the truth, especially when it came to his party and the responsiblity of governing. He knows that the political arsonists faction of his party will never be satisfied with anything short of setting fire to Our nation's Capitol in an utterly despicable attempt to destroy_Not just Obama's presidency but also Our entire system of government_the 200+ yr old system that's actually been entrusted to today's congressional members.

He wants No further part in any of that destruction.

So I wonder – Will he actually have the Courage to do as much of "the right thing" as possible (like avoiding a government shutdown) before he leaves office? He seems to be indicating that he will.

But time will tell.

Btw- I was away most of last week attending a sickle cell health conference in Baltimore, MD. It really is good to be back!

John Boehner lashed out at "false prophets" in the right's ranks, blaming them for political strategies that "never had a chance" even while taking the government into fiscal crises.

"Absolutely, they're not realistic," the retiring House speaker said of hard-line conservatives and outside groups in a Sunday interview on CBS' "Face the Nation."

He pointed to the October 2013 shutdown after conservative House Republicans demanded the repeal of President Barack Obama's signature health care law as one maneuver — led by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz — that was never going to succeed.

"The Bible says beware of false prophets. And there are people out there, you know, spreading noise about how much can get done. I mean this whole notion that we're going to shut down the government to get rid of Obamacare in 2013 — this plan never had a chance," Boehner said.

"But over the course of the August recess in 2013 and in September, a lot of my Republican colleagues who knew this was a fool's errand — really, they were getting all this pressure from home to do this," he said.

Boehner said conservative, Washington-based groups knew the goals they were championing couldn't be accomplished but pressed for them anyway.

"And so, we've got groups here in town, members of the House and Senate here in town, who whipped people into a frenzy believing they can accomplish things that they know — they know — are never going to happen," he said.

Asked specifically if Cruz, a GOP presidential candidate, was a "false prophet," Boehner didn't dispute it. He even pointed to his comment at a private fundraiser, leaked to reporters later, that Cruz is a "jackass."

"You can pick a lot of names out. I'll let you choose them," he said.

OUCH!!

My recent post Pope Francis Wows America!!