Government shutdown: Freedom Caucus could sabotage McCarthy after GOP resignation
Cami Mondeaux
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House Republicans overcame a weeklong standoff between party leaders and a group of hard-line conservatives after Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) agreed to a number of demands offered by members of his far-right flank. But that may prove to be only a temporary fix as GOP rebels seek to increase the pressure.
Among the deals made by McCarthy was an agreement to keep appropriations bills at 2022 levels, coming in far below the spending caps negotiated between the speaker and President Joe Biden in last month’s debt limit talks. That compromise alone is set to anger Democrats in the House and Senate, who are sure to propose higher spending levels in their budget — setting the stage for a possible government shutdown fight.
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Meanwhile, a looming resignation in the House could further ignite turmoil within the GOP.
Rep. Chris Stewart (R-UT) announced last month he would be stepping down from Congress in mid-September due to his wife’s health. His absence opens a highly coveted seat on the House Appropriations Committee, which is sure to attract several of McCarthy’s detractors to secure a larger presence at the negotiating table.
Several of the conservative holdouts who stalled legislative action last week have expressed interest in the position, with some already approaching McCarthy about the opportunity. McCarthy does not have unilateral authority over committee assignments — those are typically handled by the GOP Steering Committee — but he does have influence over who may be picked.
The agreement to write appropriations bills at 2022 levels sets the House on a collision course with the Senate, raising the stakes of a likely government shutdown later this year.
Congress must pass 12 separate spending bills before the Sept. 30 deadline to avoid a government shutdown. Each of those bills must pass both the House and Senate, meaning anything that strays too far from the bipartisan debt ceiling agreement could face major opposition.
Democrats have criticized Republicans for the shift in tone toward their appropriations bills, claiming it’s evidence of fractured party relations.
“The House Republican Conference is in shambles,” Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-CA) said on Tuesday. “I think it’s shocking that it took less than two weeks for Republicans to walk away from an agreement that they made. This is an agreement that the speaker made directly, and he took pains to get everybody else out of the room and to get to the deal with just him and the president. And then he’s walking away from that deal.”
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Republican leaders have brushed off criticism that intraparty tensions are interfering with House business, arguing the disagreements are an expected result of a slim majority.
“There will be days where we fight it out for the best possible outcome,” House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) said. “That’s the beauty of having a diverse conference made up of 222 members with different ideas and different perspectives.”