President Obama said the resignation of Republican House Speaker John Boehner “took me by surprise,” and called the GOP leader a “good man.”
Despite disagreements, Obama said the speaker has “always conducted himself … with civility” and has “kept his word,” he said in a joint press conference with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Obama said Friday that he took the time to “call John directly and talk to him,” as soon as he finished a meeting his meeting with Xi. Although “we had a lot of disagreements,” Obama said Boehner is “a good man, he is a patriot.”
Obama said he hopes the next Republican speaker will not threaten to shut down government.
“My hope is there is a recognition in the next speaker … that we can have significant issues … but that doesn’t mean you shut down the government,” Obama said.
“You don’t get what you want 100 percent of the time,” he said. “Perhaps the visit by the holy father changed some minds. I know … Speaker Boehner was deeply moved.”
