Speaker John Boehner's resignation was met with "stunned silence" by his fellow Republicans - according to Congressman Chris Collins.
Collins (R-Clarence) tells WBFO News that Boehner made a very brave decision. And he wouldn't be surprised if the Speaker made up his mind after listening to Pope Francis speak to Congress.
"He's a very Christian individual - and I'm sure he was doing an awful lot of soul searching. And I wouldn't be the least bit surprised that he has debated within himself, 'what was the right thing to do?' That the Pope being here yesterday (Thursday) probably was a piece of his decision making," Collins said.
Collins also thinks it will be hard to find someone to fill Boehner's shoes. He says the Speaker clearly knew that outside interests were going to keep raising money to oust him - and fracture the conference - to keep Congress from dealing with important issues facing the country.