No Earmarks Equals Boehner Fail?

I wonder if there's a connection between Boehner's failure to get his debt ceiling bill through the House and the ban on earmarks? Usually there's a lot of horse trading, sometimes borderline illegal, needed to get these big controversial bills through and, if you don't have earmarks, your trading options are much more limited.  That's a cost of political reform which us good government types support.