Congress includes some of the “dumbest” and “raunchiest” people in the country — but also some of the smartest — House Speaker John Boehner John Andrew BoehnerLongtime House parliamentarian to step down Five things we learned from this year's primaries Bad blood between Pelosi, Meadows complicates coronavirus talks MORE said in a report published this weekend.

Boehner John Andrew BoehnerLongtime House parliamentarian to step down Five things we learned from this year's primaries Bad blood between Pelosi, Meadows complicates coronavirus talks MORE (R-Ohio) told the Wall Street Journal's Peggy Noonan that it can be difficult to wrangle misbehaving members of Congress, while arguing that the chamber is not uniquely corrupt or scandal-prone.

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"We got 435 members. It's just a slice of America, it really is,” he said. “We got some of the smartest people in the country who serve here, and some of the dumbest. We got some of the best people you'd ever meet, and some of the raunchiest. We've got 'em all."

Boehner also downplayed tensions with Majority Leader Eric Cantor Eric Ivan CantorThe Hill's Campaign Report: Florida hangs in the balance Eric Cantor teams up with former rival Dave Brat in supporting GOP candidate in former district Bottom line MORE (R-Va.).

"Eric and I have never disagreed on strategy, ever,” he said. “From time to time there's been some disagreement on tactics, not usually between Eric and I, usually on the staff level."

Tensions between the two offices recently reached a point that prompted staff to seek a “truce.” Rank-and-file members have also called on Boehner and Cantor to patch up their differences.



Boehner told Noonan his relation ship with President Obama was a different story: "[H]e and I get along fine. But boy do we have big differences."