This op-ed originally ran on TheHill.com.
Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) is on the cusp of redefining the House Speakership, a position that he initially did not even want. The gavel associated with being two heartbeats from the presidency is traditionally bestowed upon a senior House member as the capstone of his career and he typically wields it with the primary aim of preserving his power. Ryan, however, has a long career left ahead of him and is already preparing to spend his full cache of political power to work himself out of the job as expeditiously as possible.
Ryan initially has been a cautious Speaker. He has devolved power from the party's leadership back to the chamber's committee chairmen. He has eschewed forcing resolution where compromise has been elusive, even with Congress's most fundamental duty of developing a budget. Fully cognizant of the intra-party stalemates that led to predecessor John Boehner's (R-Ohio) demise at the hands of the Freedom Caucus, Ryan has taken pains to incorporate these often inflexible members into the policymaking process.