The National Republican Congressional Committee is deploying former House Speaker John Boehner in its fundraising effort, with an email blast from the fallen leader calling on Republican voters to help the party retain “principled conservatives” in Congress.
“As I travel across our beautiful country in my RV, I hear the same thing: President Obama failed us. And Hillary, who’s already promised to continue President Obama’s failed policies, won’t do any better,” said the Monday missive, which was signed by the thirteen-term Republican from Ohio.
“What our country needs is leadership. No matter what happens in November, we need principled conservatives leading the House,” Boehner added. “That’s why we must do everything in our power to maintain and grow our majority in Congress.”
Boehner, who served four years as speaker, was forced to resign in 2015 amid conservative angst over massive growth in the national debt during his tenure. He announced this month that he was joining international lobbying firm Squire Patton Boggs “as a strategic advisor to clients in the U.S. and abroad,” and has also been campaigning for a handful of House Republicans.
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The longtime Washington operative already achieved one victory this year with the defeat of Kansas Rep. Tim Huelskamp in the Republican primary. Huelskamp, who undermined Boehner during his term as House leader, had been opposed by establishment-aligned groups like the Chamber of Commerce.
The NRCC invoked Boehner’s name in a last-ditch effort to raise funds before the quarterly reporting deadline on Sept. 30. House Democrats beat the amount raised by Republicans last month, though the two have been nearly equal overall. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee held a total of $63 million cash on hand at the end of August, compared to $65.4 million for Republicans.
