The Post-Boehner Congress and Washington’s Sense of Dread

At the White House, a stunned President Obama expressed hope for bipartisan progress as turmoil among Republicans ended Representative John A. Boehner’s speakership.

On Capitol Hill, the conservatives who had again felled one of their leaders rallied to name the terms for the next person to wield the speaker’s gavel.

And on Wall Street, fear set in at the prospect of another showdown over the government’s ability to pay its debt, support its export businesses and simply keep its doors open.

Mr. Boehner’s sudden announcement on Friday that he will...