Bill O'Brien (right), back in days when he was better loved
Something very unusual happened in the Granite State on Wednesday—very unusual indeed. After a
century of Republican dominance, New Hampshire's enormous, 400-member state House has become notoriously subject to the winds of change, switching hands four times in the past five election cycles, including the most recent. So with the chamber now back under GOP control after last month's wipeout, it seemed a given that the party would re-appoint its former speaker, Bill O'Brien, who led the body following the 2010 wave.
O'Brien, though, is an extremist and a bully, and his incendiary leadership style earned plenty of blame from fellow Republicans when the House went back to the Democrats in 2012. Of course, those kinds of attributes certainly haven't stopped lots of other Republicans from advancing (or re-advancing) through the ranks, but when the full chamber gathered to pick a new Speaker, O'Brien failed to capture a majority on the first vote against Democratic Leader Steve Shurtleff.
The House actually uses a secret ballot, but it's clear what happened: A handful of renegade Republicans, sick of O'Brien's abuse, sided with Democrats to deny him a win. At that point, Shurtleff dropped out and state Rep. Shawn Jasper, a Republican, entered the fray. After two more ballots, enough Republicans joined with Democrats to give Jasper an outright victory, making him speaker.
While this of course is a debacle for O'Brien and his hardline supporters, it's good news for Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan, who'd make a very appealing candidate for Senate and at least won't have to face a state House bent on destroying her for the next two years. And needless to say, this coup has conservatives in New Hampshire enraged beyond measure. The wife of one loyalist Republican said that serving in the House "is like being trapped in a bad marriage" with a "traitor as Speaker." Ahh. You can almost smell the fuming. But after some exciting nuptials, Democrats might actually be in for a much more relaxing honeymoon.