Despite striking a deal with President Joe Biden, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) week could be made difficult by three powerful Republican colleagues.
As part of his campaign to secure the speaker’s gavel earlier this year, McCarthy promised changes to the House Rules Committee, or “the speaker’s committee” — a pledge that was pivotal to him gaining the votes of Reps. Chip Roy (R-TX) and Ralph Norman (R-SC), who were among the last holdouts. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) was also given a seat on the committee.
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Now, those same three additions are in a position to hold up a vote on the debt deal by refusing to support it for floor consideration.
The House Rules Committee is made up of appointees from the House speaker and minority leader, and the committee determines which bills to schedule for consideration on the floor. The committee currently seats nine Republicans and four Democrats, and with all four blue members voting against the bill, three conservatives could sink the plan.
“This is a horrible deal,” Norman told the Washington Examiner. “The American people do not deserve this at all.”
Roy and Norman, both members of the House Freedom Caucus, have already been critical of the deal, with Norman calling it “insanity” in the final stages of negotiations.
This “deal” is insanity.
A $4T debt ceiling increase with virtually no cuts is not what we agreed to.
Not gonna vote to bankrupt our country. The American people deserve better.
— Rep. Ralph Norman (@RepRalphNorman) May 28, 2023
“Not gonna vote to bankrupt our country,” Norman tweeted. “The American people deserve better.”
Roy also tweeted a statement, saying he was planning to “hold the line” when it comes to the passage of the debt plan.
Roy tweeted on Monday “that it was explicit both that nothing would pass Rules Committee without AT LEAST 7 GOP votes — AND that the Committee would not allow reporting out rules without unanimous Republican votes.”
Massie remains undecided on the legislation and could be the swing vote on the Rules Committee.
“I think Thomas is genuinely thinking about it.” Norman said, noting that Massie will have to make his own decisions and what he chooses “does not influence us at all.”
Massie tweeted on Monday that the lawmakers “have a chance to control spending more transparently and precisely using powerful Congressional tools such as the upcoming appropriations bills.”
If three of the GOP members vote against the bill, the only path for approval is if one of the minority members crosses party lines, a highly unlikely scenario. Those Democratic members include Reps. Jim McGovern (D-MA), Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA), Joe Neguse (D-CO), and Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-NM).
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Norman said he is unsure of the exact number of Democratic votes McCarthy will bring in, but is estimated to be around 100, so the Speaker “is going to rely on Democrats” to pass this “giveaway bill. ”
The House Freedom Caucus will have a meeting tonight, Norman said, noting they’ll be having ongoing discussions on how to tackle the debt bill.
