WASHINGTON (MEDIA GENERAL) – Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., was officially nominated by his fellow Republicans to be the next Speaker of the House Wednesday afternoon.
“This begins a new day in the House of Representatives,” Ryan said to a small mob of reporters after he was nominated.
But how will it be a new day? Will Ryan be different from the current Speaker of the House John Boehner? If so, how?
We turned to some of his Republican colleagues and asked what they thought would be different.
“They both have their strengths,” Rep. Tim Walhberg, R-MI, said. “John Boehner, I think was great at understanding how to move things forward strategically in a difficult time period. I think history will be kind to him, but I think Paul does have a better ability to communicate.”
Ryan laid out early that his family time will go untouched despite the influx of responsibility he’s accepting by taking on the speakership. The Wisconsin native said, in exchange for spending less time on the road fundraising, he will communicate using the media more often than Boehner.
“He’s willing to go on the shows after the 9 o’clock, 10 o’clock hour if necessary and talk very clearly about the issues,” Walhberg said. “So that our base will have a better understanding of it in the future.”
“I think he can also swing some people over who right now don’t think they’re conservative, but really are when they hear the issues,” Walhberg said.
What remains unclear is if Ryan will face the same united opposition Boehner has faced from conservatives in the Freedom Caucus.
Ryan received 200 votes from other Republicans. Forty-three Republicans voted for Rep. Daniel Webster, R-FL, the candidate that the Freedom Caucus endorsed.
Conservative blogs and news organizations have already started attacking Ryan as not conservative enough, but some members of Congress think Ryan may reach out to conservatives more often than Boehner.
“I think you’re going to see Paul make an effort to reach out,” said Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-TN. “He will be the most conservative speaker with the most conservative voting record that we have had.”
There still needs to be a formal vote on the House floor on Thursday. Ryan needs 218 votes, which Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Ryan should receive easily.
