EXCLUSIVE: Seven other members of the House Freedom Caucus are threatening to oppose Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy as the next speaker unless he is granted immunity under congressional rules.
Freedom Caucus lawmakers have told McCarthy, D-Calif., that they will seriously engage in concessions on those provisions or risk losing their support. GOP lawmakers led by Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Chip Roy of Texas, chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, outlined their demands in a letter to colleagues late Thursday.
“The American people send us to Washington to do what we say we will do, which is to fight to contain spending and advance the conservative agenda,” the lawmakers wrote. “We must organize ourselves to ensure that there is ‘checking’ in the swamp and to reform the status quo.”
Other members of the letter are Rep. Dan Bishop of North Carolina, Paul Gosar of Arizona and Andrew Clyde of Georgia. Newly elected Reps. Andy Ogles of Tennessee, who is not set to take office until Jan. 3, and Eli Crane of Arizona also signed on.
First on the list of demands is a rule change to make it easier to remove the speaker of the House by allowing any lawmaker to propose a “motion to vacate the chair” at any time. This parliamentary tactic forces the speaker to vote on retention, the policy members of the Freedom Caucus want against McCarthy.
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Six additional members of the House Freedom Caucus, led by Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, and others, are threatening to oppose Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s promotion to the speakership if they are not granted exemptions under congressional rules.
(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
“Although difficult in practice, it is an important mechanism for restoring trust and ensuring accountability,” the lawmakers wrote.
Lawmakers want all legislation to focus on a single topic, be open to the public for 72 hours before a vote, and receive a full debate where amendments can be proposed and voted on. . Conservatives also want to see major legislation passed in the next Congress, from the farm bill to the National Defense Policy Act, which includes provisions that would check President Biden’s administration.
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“The farm bill should reform food stamp welfare programs and prevent the Chinese government from buying land,” the lawmakers wrote. “Separation bills must use the power of the purse to stop the border insurgency, restore energy freedom, and/or prevent the hiring of more IRS employees to harass Americans.”
Beyond legislation, Freedom Caucus members want more representation on key panels, including the House Rules Committee, which prepares legislation for the floor and decides which amendments can be voted on. They also want McCarthy to create a new watchdog to investigate whether the powers of the federal government have been weaponized by President Biden and Democrats for political gain.
“The American people sent us to Washington to do what we said we would, which is to fight to contain spending and advance the conservative agenda,” said lawmakers led by House Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry, R-Pa. wrote in a letter sent to colleagues on Thursday.
(AP Photo/Amanda Andrade-Rhoades)
“We need to have a clear policy, and this message needs to be sent to the PACs associated with the leadership – so as not to undermine the confidence of those who are ultimately supposed to lead and not participate in local elections,” the lawmakers wrote.
Seven members of the Freedom Caucus want to ban GOP leaders and their political action committees from participating in the Republican primaries.
While lawmakers understand that not all demands will be met, at least a few should be accepted in exchange for their support.
“We believe these should form the basis of any conversation about our leadership, and regardless of the poll, the sum of the polls must be considered if we are truly to come together as a conference,” he wrote. legislators.
Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy faces public opposition from five other GOP lawmakers to become speaker.
(AP Photo/Barry Reeger)
McCarthy, the GOP nominee for House speaker, cannot afford to ignore the demands. The California Republican faces public opposition from five other GOP lawmakers to become speaker.
McCarthy’s office did not immediately return a request for comment on the letter.
The opposition is potentially problematic, given that the GOP has a narrow 222-213 majority next year and needs at least 218 votes to elect a speaker when the House meets on Jan. 3.