(UnitedVoice.com) – House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and President Joe Biden prevented a default on America’s obligations after intense negotiations over the debt ceiling. The Republican was able to get the POTUS to agree to a number of policies the Right wanted. However, that wasn’t enough for everyone.
The Freedom Caucus, often considered the most conservative members of the House, is furious over the agreement. The lawmakers are now being accused of targeting the speaker.
Conservative Lawmakers Get Revenge
On June 6, the House voted on H.Res. 463, a resolution for procedural rules for the Gas Stove Protection and Freedom Act that would have prohibited the Consumer Product Safety Commission from using federal funds to enforce product safety standards that prohibit the sale of gas stoves or cause a substantial price increase. The legislation also prohibited the use of the funds to ban the appliances. H.Res. 463 also established rules for The Save Our Stoves Act, which seeks to ban the US Department of Energy from issuing standards for appliances like gas stoves. The bills were supposed to be an easy win for McCarthy, but the Freedom Caucus blew it up.
During the vote, 11 Republicans sided with the Democrats and tanked the vote. The resolution failed 206-to-220. The GOP lawmakers who voted with Democrats were Representatives:
- Chip Roy (TX)
- Matt Gaetz (FL)
- Dan Bishop (NC)
- Matt Rosendale (MT)
- Ken Buck (CO)
- Lauren Boebert (CO)
- Eli Crane (AZ)
- Tim Burchett (TN)
- Bob Good (VA)
- Ralph Norman (SC)
- Andy Biggs (AZ)
It was the first time a procedural vote had failed since 2002, in more than 20 years.
More Bad News
The lawmakers were upset that McCarthy didn’t speak to them before he agreed to the debt ceiling bill with Biden. After the vote on Tuesday, Roy told reporters the Freedom Caucus warned leadership “not to cut that deal without coming down and sitting down to talk us.”
Farnoush Amiri, a reporter with The Associated Press, posted on Twitter that a group of 10 GOP lawmakers said they intend to oppose all legislation that passes through the House, essentially grinding the process to a halt. The Conservatives want to return to the January agreement when McCarthy was elected speaker and promised the far-right they’d have a seat in the room.
McCarthy spoke to reporters and said he intended to listen to the Freedom Caucus and “solve this, just like every time we go through here.” He downplayed the strife, saying Republicans have a “small majority,” and that has led to “a little chaos.”
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