What does Bohener's departure mean for Straus?!?

"He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck,
Will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy."
Proverbs 29:1

In the short run, it probably doesn't mean much; of course, in the short run, the Lege is out of session.

In the longer run, see the Bible verse quoted above.

As Erick Erickson explained, the major thing that changed during August was the voter anger Republican U.S. House members saw at home.  While we didn't attend, we heard reports that several Republican U.S. House members in North Texas had raucous town hall meetings.  That made Bohener's position untenable.

Meanwhile, Article 3, Section 24 of the Texas Constitution forced the Texas House to adjourn in May.  Also, the Texas House rules make it a lot harder to depose a speaker mid-session than the U.S. House.  So Straus can lay low (for now).

But the trend is identical.

[Sidenote: In a HILARIOUS display of irony, Joe Straus launched his new pretend to be a conservative campaign website while we were typing this post.]

As we wrote last December:

Election 2014 gave the American people a New Hope; if the Empire chooses to Strike Back in 2015, the Jedi WILL return in 2016.

And that's just as true in Austin as it is in D.C.

Bottom Line: This is a perilous time for incumbent Republican "leaders."  Voters are fed up with legacy Republicans colluding with Democrats to enact the crony agenda.  Across all levels, we've seen this playbook.  Bohener's demise proves seemingly safe "leaders" can collapse in a heartbeat.  The timing is anyone's guess, but Mr. Straus' days are numbered.