It was a scene straight out of "Mad Men" - chain-smoking Don Draper denouncing "addictive" cigarettes after his ad agency lost a big tobacco account.
Except it was Rep. John Boehner - speaker of the House-in-waiting - on Election Night, enthusiastically ripping into the city that made him what he is.
"For too long, Washington has been doing what's best for Washington, not what's best for the American people," said the man who would be third in line to the presidency.
The sounds of jaws dropping filled the air. Here was a man who epitomized Washington denying he ever had anything to do with the place. The fictional Don Draper would have been proud.
In many ways, Boehner is the Don Draper of D.C. - a chain-smoking, unapologetic Midwesterner in a sharp suit straight out ofAmerica, circa 1962.
"He's not going to change," said Rep. Pete King (R-L.I.). "Everyone told him to stop smoking Barclays cigarettes. He didn't stop until they went out of business. Now he's smoking Camels."
Boehner, King said, "is what he is. He has no problem having a drink with somebody, he has no problem playing golf with somebody and it's all out there. On the other hand, he's a sincere, dedicated guy."
Like Draper, Boehner will do whatever it takes to get the job done. Nowhere is that clearer than comparing some of his old statements to his most recent.
In recent months, the 10-term OhioRepublican has parroted the Tea Party's distaste for Washington insiders and big spending.
He routinely attacks stimulus spending passed under President Obama without mentioning he led the GOP troops to pass a $700 billion bailout for President Bush.
As the Bush bailout passed in October 2008, Boehner declared, "We know if we do nothing, this crisis is likely to worsen and put us in an economic slump the likes of which we have never seen."
Two weeks ago, he derided "a stimulus spending spree that created jobs abroad while "millions of Americans lost their jobs here."
In July, he erupted when Fox News' Chris Wallace noted that continuing Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% could add $700 billion to the nation's deficit.
"Chris, you've been in Washington too long," Boehner said with a trace of a smirk. "That's all a bunch of Washington talk."
As it happens, Boehner has been in Washington 20 years - an insider from the start. In 1996, he got caught handing out checks from lobbyists on the House floor.
He's unapologetic about his ties to lobbyists, people Tea Partiers revile. Many former staffers are lobbyists and he seeks their advice and presses their cases.
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