Local Congressional Members Stunned By Boehner's Exit
By David Madden
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Like just about everyone in Washington, the Tri-state Congressional Delegation expressed surprise when House Speaker John Boehner announced his decision Friday to step down.
Philadelphia Democrat Bob Brady, in his 10th term on Capitol Hill, got the news at a Pennsylvania caucus breakfast.
"It did shock us, although we weren't shocked that he had enough," he says.
Brady believes it was the 50 or so members of the Republican caucus on the far right, and their attempts to shut down the government over issues, like funding Planned Parenthood, that led to Boehner's decision.
Brady said he and Boehner didn't always see eye to eye, but tried to work together, and he'll miss that:
"We didn't agree on everything, but we agreed on compromising and we tried to move the government forward for the American people."
Eleven-term South Jersey Republican Frank LoBiondo, in a statement, called Boehner "the ultimate team player in an institution that is too often dominated by individual egos and personal aspirations."