House lawmakers unexpectedly ended their session a day early, and this was partially due to a rebellion from the most conservative members of the House Republican conference. The sudden departure came just one day after passing a short-term stopgap measure to prevent a government shutdown.
A group of 19 Republicans, mostly from the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus, voted against a procedural vote known as a rule vote on Wednesday morning. Normally, this vote passes along party lines regardless of individual support or opposition to the bill’s rule. However, House conservatives have repeatedly broken this tradition throughout the year, highlighting the challenges faced by newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson.
The conservatives rejected the rule vote this time in part as retaliation for Johnson’s funding plan, known as a continuing resolution, which was passed by the House on Tuesday. These members have been advocating for deep spending cuts in any funding legislation, but Johnson’s bill maintained government funding at current levels.
One of their grievances was also opposition to a series of amendments on one of the 12 appropriations bills necessary for long-term government funding.
Rep. Bob Good, a member of the Freedom Caucus who voted against the rule, stated, “There’s certainly a concern with the bill itself in addition to concern relative to what happened with the (continuing resolution) yesterday.”
Rep. Scott Perry, chair of the Freedom Caucus, argued that he and his conservative colleagues rejected the rule vote out of “good faith” in pursuit of conservative policy wins.
What’s notable is that moderate Republicans, specifically from the New York Delegation, also voted against the rule for the first time. Rep. Nick LaLota explained that he opposed the rule due to spending cuts that would disproportionately affect law enforcement in his district.
The House, originally scheduled to remain in session until Thursday, will now reconvene after Thanksgiving on November 28.
The dysfunction and divisions within the House Republican conference have been an ongoing issue since they gained control of the lower chamber in January. However, the fractures emerging from both conservatives and moderates threaten to make the appropriations process for long-term government funding even more challenging.
“It’s never easy to get work done here,” acknowledged Rep. Dusty Johnson, chair of the Main Street Caucus, a group of pragmatic House Republicans. He added, “It’s a lot harder when you have people who I think are prone to emotionally immature decisions. This is retaliation. If something doesn’t go their way, they decide they want to blow something up. I guess this is today’s fatality.”
While Speaker Johnson was seen as a victory for House conservatives, their opposition to his government funding plan and rejection of the rule vote indicate that his election as speaker has not changed the dynamics within the conference significantly.
Rep. Garret Graves, one of Kevin McCarthy’s closest allies and a representative from Louisiana, expressed his belief that the functionality of the House will likely worsen before it improves. He stated, “I think that some of them are coming to realize it, and I think some of it knew it the whole time.”
Overall, the divisions within the House Republican conference continue to pose challenges for legislative progress, with no immediate resolution in sight.
(This article was originally published on USA TODAY: House heads home early after conservatives retaliate over funding plan)
