Members of the House Republican Freedom Caucus blocked four bills because of Speaker Kevin McCarthy's debt ceiling deal brokered with President Joe Biden, the Conservative Brief reported. A dozen GOP congressmen sided with Democrats to block the vote.
The measures the GOP managed to block had to do with a gas stove ban and other regulatory reforms. McCarthy failed to get what he needed after a 220-206 vote Tuesday.
"Today, we took down the rule because we’re frustrated at the way this place is operating," Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) explained following the vote. "We took a stand in January to end the era of the imperial speakership," he reminded reporters.
"We’re concerned that the fundamental commitments that allowed Kevin McCarthy to assume the speakership have been violated as a consequence of the debt limit deal," Gaetz added. Gaetz was joined by Reps. Chip Roy (R-TX), Matt Rosendale (R-MT), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Bob Good (R-VA), Eli Crane (R-AZ), Tim Burchett (R-TN), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Ken Buck (R-CO), Dan Bishop (R-NC), and Andy Biggs (R-AZ).
They made it known that this was directly because of McCarthy's concessions to Biden. "We warned them not to cut that deal without coming down and sit down and talk to us," House Freedom Caucus member Roy said Tuesday.
"So this is all about restoring a process that will fundamentally change things back to what was working," he added. On Monday, Roy had voted to advance the measures.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) also made a calculated move in voting "no" so he would be able to return to the issue for another vote in the future. This fight comes after Biden signed the debt ceiling bill Saturday that allows another $4 trillion to stave off a default.
McCarthy had negotiated this deal with the president that included spending cuts in the hopes of satisfying both parties. However, that wasn't enough for Freedom Caucus.
There are rumblings that McCarthy, who finally won his coveted position after 15 votes and many concessions with his own party members, could be ousted after this. Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) thinks "he should be concerned" about his future as Speaker of the House.
"I’m not suggesting the votes are there to remove the speaker, but the speaker promised that we would operate at 2022 appropriations levels when he got the support to be the speaker," Buck told Jim Sciutto on CNN last week. "He’s now changed that to 2023 levels plus one percent."
There have been other reports of representatives proposing a vacate motion to get McCarthy out over the debt deal. This would reopen the House Speaker vote all over again, and McCarthy had a hard time as it is.
Republicans like Bishop and Roy have made it known that McCarthy's days may be numbered. Boebert said on the "War Room" podcast that McCarthy was in "violation" of his pledge to give the House Rules Committee the right to add amendments.
The in-fighting in the GOP is part of a broader issue the party has had since former President Donald Trump was elected. The Republican family is being torn apart as constituents grow impatient with the party.
This may turn out to be a positive change, considering the fact that establishment Republicans were rolling over for Democrats all along prior to the Trump era. It's about time lawmakers held their own party leaders accountable, and this may be the hill to die on.
