Illinois Congressional Delegation United In Backing Paul Ryan as House Speaker
U-S Rep.Paul Ryan (R-WI), seen here during the 2012 United States presidential election at a campaign rally in Michigan, was elected U.S. House Speaker on Oct. 29th. Pat Williams/flickr
Despite divisions in the Republican Party, Illinois Republicans in the U.S. House were united in voting for Paul Ryan of Wisconsin as their new Speaker last week, replacing John Boehner.
Thirteenth District Congressman Rodney Davis of Taylorville says Ryan’s four years as chairman of the House Budget Committee helped make possible the two-year Bipartisan Budget Agreement that Congress passed last week.
“The bill that we passed the other day will allow us to begin the process of paying down our national debt,” said Davis, during a stop Friday at the University of Illinois Urbana campus to announce student loan legislation. “And that's something that Paul is concerned about. And there's nobody better in Congress to attack the national debt than having Paul Ryan in the Speaker's chair to be able to lead that vision and lead us into the future.”
Fifteenth District Congressman John Shimkus of Collinsville voted against the Bipartisan Budget Agreement that Davis and Paul Ryan supported. Still, he thinks Ryan has the potential to be a dynamic House Speaker. During a visit to the WILL Studios on Friday, Shimkus said he hopes Ryan would use the Speaker’s chair as a “bully pulpit” for “talking about conservative policies that are very helpful to average American citizens.”
“So how does less government, lower taxes, individual responsibility, how does that really help people pursue the American dream?,” said Shimkus of the issues that Ryan might choose to highlight. “That's what we hope to be able to see from him.”
And Shimkus says that having Ryan as House Speaker will help House Republicans stay unified. He says some in the House GOP caucus simply did not trust former Speaker Boehner or Kevin McCarthy, who was considered Boehner’s heir apparent until he withdrew from consideration for the Speaker’s post.
Ryan’s election as Speaker also grew praise from 18th District Congressman Darin LaHood, who said in a news release that he believes Paul Ryan “is the fresh face the Republican Party has been in need of to press forward a common sense, conservative agenda I was elected to pursue”. LaHood came to office in a special election earlier this year, following the resignation of Republican Aaron Schock.