Interesting story from
Politico about how the new Speaker of the House, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin), used his influence to pick his successor as chairman of the powerful, lobbyist enriched, House Ways and Means Committee.
The most interesting part, to me, is the way he insisted members not take into account the relative ability to raise money when considering the two reps vying for the position:
"...when decision time came, the new GOP leader went all in for his pick, and in doing so, offered an early glimpse of how he intends to exercise power. He also showed that fundraising considerations, a critical metric in Congress and politics in general, would not dictate his thinking."
And there's more:
"[Ohio Rep. Pat] Tiberi has also historically raised more money than [Texas Rep. Kevin] Brady. But it's clear that wasn't a factor. Ryan's staff told Tiberi and Brady's operations to drop material relating to the contenders' prowess as fundraisers from their presentations to avoid any hint of impropriety. And before the steering committee met, a Republican lawyer urged the members to avoid asking questions about fundraising."
Brady was Ryan's choice, and was selected as chair.
In the long run, this may mean less about how Ryan will weigh fundraising ability in other chairmanships than about how much he cares about the ethical image of his former committee. Or, that he just didn't want Tiberi, who was former Speaker John Boehner's guy. Still, it's interesting.