John Boehner, the RINO former speaker of the House, recently got a bit emotional while attending Nancy Pelosi’s portrait unveiling ceremony on Capitol Hill.

Boehner, a Republican, succeeded Pelosi as speaker after Republicans won the House in 2010. He stepped down in 2015 and was succeeded by Paul Ryan. Pelosi became speaker again after Democrats reclaimed the majority in 2018. She announced last month that she would step away from leadership as Republicans prepare to retake a slim majority in the House.

“No other speaker of the House in the modern era, Republican or Democrat, has wielded the gavel with such authority or with such consistent results,” Boehner said at the ceremony. “Let me just say: you are one tough cookie.”

Boehner said that he and Pelosi “disagreed optically on many things, but we were never disagreeable to each other.” Boehner published a memoir last year in which he described his exasperation with the divisions in the House Republican caucus, particularly on the far right.

Boehner noted that he at times got into trouble with some of his own members for some of his friendly gestures toward Pelosi. When he took the gavel in 2011, he recalled, he leaned in to give Pelosi a kiss. When she backed away, Boehner said, “I thought to myself, I can’t let her rebuff me so I kind of moved in and planted that kiss on her.” He said he heard about the moment for months or even years afterward.

“Leaders lead, and you, Madame Speaker, have led,” Boehner said.

.@SpeakerBoehner tribute to @SpeakerPelosi: "No other speaker of the House in the modern era, Republican or Democrat, has wielded the gavel with such authority or with such consistent results. You are one tough cookie." pic.twitter.com/ku6wA9rCZB

— CSPAN (@cspan) December 14, 2022

The portrait, from artist Ronald Sherr, will be hung in the Speaker’s Lobby, which is just outside the House chamber.