Unlike the tragedy of Caesar’s assassination, the demise of the speakership was more a comedy of errors, led by a king among fools.
The speaker of the House was once a position whose innate and practical power was consistent with its spot as second in line to the presidency. Yet its run-in with an angry mob of eight Republican House members and 208 House Democratic go-alongs proved fatal to the speakership’s role in American politics.
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There was a time when if eight Republicans tried to do to Joseph Gurney Cannon what they did to Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), a mere Commodus-like thumbs-down signal would not only stop them in their tracks but likely make them functionally disappear.
The first speaker was Frederick Muhlenberg, elected on April 1, 1789. Considering where we are today, one can only chuckle at the irony of the birth of the speakership occurring on April Fool’s Day. Muhlenberg had the arduous task of determining what the heck a speaker does since the Constitution does not spell out the duties. Early on, it was primarily about keeping order and establishing House rules. Under Henry Clay, the role became more active in controlling the legislative process and also exerting influence.
But it wasn’t until the early 20th century that the speakership grew into a significant political force within the House. It was Republican Cannon who became the answer to “Who’s your daddy?” Cannon, aside from determining the House agenda, also appointed all committee members. He chose the committee chairmen, headed up the Rules Committee, and determined which committee would see which bills. It’s no wonder they named the oldest House office building after him.
Sam Rayburn, who also has a House building named after him, had the longest cumulative tenure as House speaker. Rayburn was instrumental in getting domestic laws and foreign assistance programs favored by Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman to their desks to sign into law.
The turmoil of the ’60s and ’70s (assassinations, the Vietnam War, Watergate) relegated the speaker’s role to the background as presidents took even more of the limelight. The rise of Ronald Reagan also gave rise to Speaker Tip O’Neill, who famously clashed with Reagan on spending bills, tax bills, and defense spending.
The role of the speaker shifted when Republicans, who hadn’t controlled the House in the previous 40 years, won a majority in the 1994 midterm elections. Rep. Newt Gingrich, who had led the way in getting former House Speaker Jim Wright to resign over ethical issues, took the helm. Gingrich’s mistake was thinking he was bigger than the role, and within four years, he lost the support of his caucus, turning the reins over to Dennis Hastert, who drew little attention to himself (for what we know now was probably good reason). Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) first tenure as speaker beyond the history-making of becoming the first woman in the role was unremarkable outside of helping push through Obamacare, as she was shunted aside by a new generation of Democrats.
The weakness of parties and campaign finance reform that favored specific interests over everything else began to change the makeup of Congress, bringing in newer, more brash representatives leadership found difficult to control. During John Boehner’s tenure with the gavel, the rebellious Freedom Caucus showed up. Within four years, Boehner had enough and retired. By this time, the job became so undesirable that Republicans had to nearly beg Paul Ryan to take the job. Ryan, too, rather than deal with the nonsense, announced his retirement before Democrats won back control of the House in the 2018 midterm elections.
Pelosi’s second stint as House speaker saw her maintaining control of her caucus for most votes, but when she floated the idea of censuring Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) for some blatant antisemitism, she was steamrolled by the “Squad.” She got pushed into launching an impeachment she knew would not result in former President Donald Trump’s removal, and when the GOP won back control of the House in 2022, Pelosi stepped down from leadership.
Now on life support, the role of the speaker came down to McCarthy, who wanted the role so badly that he acquiesced to a list of demands that diminished the speakership to where he had so little power that his ouster was almost inevitable from the start.
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Jay Caruso is a writer and editor residing in West Virginia.
