House Speaker John Boehner's longtime press secretary, Michael Steel, is leaving to join Jeb Bush's 2016 presidential campaign — leaving a gaping hole in the Ohio lawmaker's staff that one operative called "awfully big loafers to fill,"
Roll Call reported.
In a town full of tough and seasoned Hill staffers, Steel distinguished himself with his folksy but calculated manner as he worked for the Ohio GOP leader for the past seven years — Boehner's entire tenure as speaker, Roll Call noted.
"Every reporter who has sought a comment from the speaker’s office probably knows Steel — and Steel probably knows them," wrote Roll Call's Matt Fuller.
As Steel heads off for a tough primary slog amid a crowded GOP presidential field, the focus in Boehner's press shop turns to his replacement — a word that seems impossible for many who have worked with him, Roll Call noted.
"Someone will take his job, sure, but Steel is his own distinct brand. He’s a memorable press secretary, calculating, laconic — at least on the record — vexingly professional, even a little witty," Fuller described.
He's also a man of few but pointed words, even calling out reporters' questions as "horse----," Roll Call said.
"Often he says more in a few words than other spokespersons would in paragraphs," Purple Strategies managing director Rory Cooper told Roll Call.
Boehner lauded Steel's considerable talents to his office in a statement,
CNN said.
"Ask anyone in the Capitol — Republican, Democrat, or otherwise — about Michael Steel, and they will tell you the same thing: he is a pro's pro," Boehner said. "For more than seven years, I have relied on his ability to dissect an issue, win a debate, and deal openly and honestly with the press."
In his new role with the Bush camp, Steel will defend against immigration policy criticism, something he's gotten plenty of experience with amid recent debate, Roll Call said.
Word of Steel taking a "leadership role" in Bush's Right to Rise Solutions PAC was first
reported by Politico. It noted that Steel had worked in Washington for 12 years, graduating from the University of North Carolina and and receiving his master's degree from Columbia University.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.