EXCLUSIVE — Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus are demanding substantial changes to House and conference rules in an effort at decentralizing power away from congressional leadership and providing more say for rank-and-file members.
The group’s call for change comes as Republicans express optimism about winning the majority for the first time since 2018. House Republicans need to net five seats in the 435-member chamber, and caucus members are looking to flex their political muscles to exert pressure on GOP leaders.
“Between now and January, the House Freedom Caucus will work with like-minded colleagues to demand aggressive reforms to return the People’s House back to the American people and make it function again. The leaders of both political parties have consolidated so much power that most Members of Congress have no meaningful role in the legislative process beyond voting up or down,” the group said in a memo exclusively obtained by the Washington Examiner.
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The caucus is a key group the votes of which House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) will need to court in order to win at least 218, a House majority, necessary to become the next speaker. The caucus has flexed its political muscles previously in leadership fights, playing a key role in Speaker John Boehner’s decision to step down in October 2015.
The group’s demands include reforming the “Motion to Vacate the Chair” procedure, a rarely used legislative tactic aimed at deposing a sitting speaker. In 2015, then-Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC), the future Trump administration White House chief of staff, threatened to use a “Vacate the Chair” motion against Boehner, though he never demanded a vote on it.
The caucus also is eyeing changes to the makeup of the Steering Committee, which is responsible for selecting which committees members sit on and who leads them. A push for more “Regional Representatives” to be included is listed as a priority by the caucus.
Traditionally, the Steering Committee has been made up of leadership allies. But conservatives argue the panel has been used to keep certain voices off committees or removed when they don’t fall in line with leadership’s position.
“The Steering Committee makes nearly all decisions on committee assignments for House Republicans, but its makeup does not reflect all House Republicans, and instead it is packed with party leaders and their close allies. As a result, decisions are made based on who is loyal to leadership and who delivers the most fundraising — not who is best qualified,” the memo said.
The caucus, led by Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), is also looking for the implementation of a “Majority of the Majority” rule to pass legislation, a move they hope will move legislation to the right.
“Our constituents did not elect us to cut deals with Democrats that cannot win the support of most Republicans,” they wrote. “Not only will this force more unity and consensus among House Republicans by requiring us to tackle the tough issues together, but it upholds Republicans’ commitment to voters that we will remain faithful to the promises we make.”
Members argued that committees need more independence to restore the legislative process, arguing that the current process has failed to have bills go through the proper vetting process before coming to the floor.
“Instead of being selected based on loyalty towards and fundraising for party leadership, committee chairs should be elected by the members of their committee based on their qualifications and effectiveness. Furthermore, committees need the ability to defend their jurisdiction from being ignored. Republicans should prohibit legislation from coming to the floor unless each committee of jurisdiction has acted on it unless waived by the Republicans in the relevant committees,” they said.
The conservative lawmakers are additionally calling for an open amendment process, noting that the process was previously more amenable to changing bills on the floor.
“No Member of the ‘People’s House’ has been allowed to offer an amendment in an open process to change legislation being considered on the floor since May 2016. The Republican 115th Congress broke the record for the most bills considered without amendments,” they said.
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The group, which was founded on the premise of pushing for fiscal responsibility, argued that Republicans need to work to control spending by doing away with continuing resolutions and omnibus bills to keep the government funded and return to regular order in the appropriations process. Congress has been known to merge spending bills in recent years, making them easier to pass as leaders look to avert government shutdowns.
“If the House fails to pass appropriations by August 1, then no other legislation should come to the floor until it does. If the House still has not acted by September 10, the Republican Speaker should be prohibited from recessing or adjourning until it has done its duty,” they said.
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The reinstatement of the “Holman Rule,” which allows for members to make targeted spending cuts to bureaucrats’ salaries, is on the list of changes after it was removed at the start of the 116th Congress.
Members cited White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci, whom they have repeatedly slammed over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, as an example of a federal employee they would like to target with a salary cut.
“Democrats eliminated the ‘Holman Rule’ when they took the House because it allows Members to make targeted spending cuts in appropriations funding bills by slashing the funding of specific federal programs or cutting the salaries of individual federal employees (e.g., Dr. Anthony Fauci),” they said. “Republicans must reimplement the Holman Rule.”
Members went on to accuse Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) of abusing her power by doing away with certain rules and implementing procedures such as proxy voting, which they argue should be abolished if Republicans take back the House. In addition, the group is pushing for comparative print to be made available to lay out changes to the legislation before they are brought to the floor, earmarks to be banned, making stand-alone votes to raise the debt ceiling mandatory, and requiring bill text to be posted for 72 hours before a vote is held.
The House Freedom Caucus, which has roughly three dozen members, is expected to grow in numbers next year, likely providing the group with more leverage depending on the final makeup of the GOP conference in the 117th Congress.
