Possibly the hardest part about covering Congress is getting lawmakers off script. They have teams of staffers around, constantly feeding them “their” policy positions. They also attend weekly caucus meetings, where the leadership lays out the party’s stance and talking points on the week’s agenda.

That’s why retiring lawmakers are great.

Republicans in the House are growing increasingly angry with their leaders, but no members will talk about it on the record (off the record their staffers will, but that does little good for a radio reporter).

Angering the party leaders is a Washington no-no: an acute freshman wouldn’t dare to, and veterans know you rarely cross the leadership, unless you have the votes to take over the post.

Barbara Cubin (R-WY) is among thirty Republicans retiring from Congress this year. While she hasn’t made many headlines in her fourteen years in Congress, she is making them now.

I caught up with the normally elusive Cubin (after a mere two hour wait) and asked her about the three special elections the GOP recently lost.

Cubin said she didn’t want to make her party’s leaders mad, but after a little prodding I got a gem from her: the first on the record renunciation of the current House leaders.

Cubin says, “I think the fact that we don’t have an agenda, that people in America don’t know what we stand for, what we believe in, what we wish to accomplish, has been devastating to the party. And I think that shows a lack of leadership.”

Many lawmakers agree with her, though they are holding their tongues. If in the fall the GOP suffers major losses, as is expected, November will be when Republicans (at least the ones that aren’t retiring) start voicing their anger with the management, and looking for new party heads.