Karl Rove singled out a Kansas member of the House on Sunday and pointed to him as an example of why Republicans need to enforce discipline against their members when running the House.
“The rules are meant to keep the majority’s strength together, and one of the problems is that we have some members — [Kansas Rep. Tim] Huelskamp for example, he was tossed off the Agriculture Committee,” Rove said on Fox News Sunday, referencing an incident that took place in 2012 when Speaker John Boehner purged several Republicans from their committee assignments. Huelskamp was removed from both the Agriculture and the Budget Committees.
“Because he was on the Budget Committee,” Rove explained. “Huelskamp was on the Budget Committee … and voted against the Republican position on the floor of the House with Nancy Pelosi.”
Huelskamp was removed from some of his committee assignments in 2012 along with Reps. Justin Amash, R-Mich., Walter Jones, R-N.C., and David Schweikert, R-Ariz. The group voted against a budget proposal from Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., although Republicans eventually were able to pass it with votes from 85 Republicans and 172 Democrats.
House conservatives have said they would support a speaker who would not punish members for voting according to their constituents’ wishes and would allow more amendments to make it to the floor of the House. They want regular order and the power to have bills pass through committees according to schedule instead of being rushed for a vote at the last moment.
If Republicans can’t settle on a replacement, Rove speculated, Boehner could remain in the position.
Related Story: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/article/2573853
“We might end up with John Boehner, who is elected through January of 2017,” Rove said. “[House Homeland Security Committee Chairman] Michael McCaul is a name that has bubbled up here in the last 24 hours. There are others. And I do think it will take some time to make that decision. But ultimately, it’s going to have to be somebody who can walk in there, and has the ability to draw respect from all elements of the party in order to function as the leader.”
