November 18, 2015

Full Audio of Former Speaker’s Remarks Available at ForumClub.Org

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In his first formal remarks since handing over the speaker’s gavel and leaving Congress, former U.S. House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) shared some of the lessons in leadership he acquired during a 25-year run on Capitol Hill and discussed the opportunity that exists to reset America’s economic foundation in the years ahead.

Speaker Boehner’s speech – the full audio of which is available here – was delivered to an audience at the Forum Club of Southwest Florida on Friday, November 13, 2015, fulfilling a speaking commitment Boehner had made months earlier, while still in office.

Speaker Boehner’s Nov. 13 remarks offer both a retrospective on his remarkable years in Congress and a forward-looking policy roadmap for capitalizing on the domestic energy boom, providing an early preview of some of the themes the former speaker is likely to emphasize in his post-congressional work.

In his speech, the former House Speaker said he worries the “supercharged” atmosphere in which politics and governing take place in America today may cause us to “miss our moment as a nation.”

“We’re in the midst of a domestic energy boom in America,” Speaker Boehner said, noting the boom that is underway in part because of bipartisan efforts in Congress that successfully fought efforts by the Obama Administration to block American-made energy production. “

[The energy boom] gives us a chance to reset the foundations of our economy and is going to allow us to be more competitive around the world, [and] allow us to improve productivity faster than the rest of the world. [If] we’re serious about taking advantage of this opportunity, I believe there are some things we need to do.”

Among the steps America must take as a nation in the months and years ahead, according to Speaker Boehner:

  • Tax reform. “We need to reform our tax code. Both