The floor of the House was paralyzed for a second day on Wednesday amid an uproar from conservatives blocking party-line Republican measures, amounting to the biggest blockade since the Speaker’s election five months ago. In an effort to break the impasse, Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and his top deputies huddled in the Speaker’s office for…
Author: Emily Brooks
House cancels votes for rest of week amid floor ‘chaos’
House leaders canceled planned votes for the rest of the week amid a revolt by conservative members that brought any votes on the House floor to a halt. “What we’re gonna do is we’re gonna come back on Monday, work through it and be back working for the American public,” Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told…
Conservative rebels throw House into limbo
A revolt from conservatives thrust the House floor into a state of limbo on Wednesday, with leaders forced to delay a second try at advancing a rule GOP rebels shot down one day earlier. The office of House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) scheduled a vote for Wednesday at 12:20 p.m. on a rule to…
Freedom Caucus pumps breaks on talk of ousting Speaker McCarthy over debt bill
A spark of initial interest in forcing a vote to remove Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from his position as Speaker over the debt limit deal he negotiated with President Biden has not caught on in the House Freedom Caucus, the hardline conservative group known for exerting pressure on GOP leadership. Multiple members leaving a Freedom Caucus…
McCarthy’s biggest victory yet comes with political price
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) may have proven his bipartisan negotiating chops by steering a debt ceiling increase through a severely divided Congress, but it came with a price. Members of the hard-line House Freedom Caucus and their allies are lashing out at the deal, saying it does not include steep enough spending cuts and…
Political winners and losers from the debt ceiling drama
Congress has sent legislation to raise the debt ceiling to President Biden, ending a months-long saga that brought the U.S. days away from a possible default. The legislation was the product of months of gamesmanship between Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), culminated by furious negotiations and an aggressive effort by leaders in both parties to…
What House passage of debt ceiling deal signifies: 5 takeaways
The House’s passage of a debt limit deal Wednesday night marks the end of a pivotal chapter for the new House GOP majority, putting Congress on a path to avoid a default and securing a huge victory for Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) — even as it’s infuriated conservatives in his own conference. The vote followed…
White House, GOP getting ‘very close’ to budget and debt limit deal
Top Democrats and Republicans sent strong signals Friday night that they’re nearing an elusive agreement on a debt-ceiling increase to prevent an economy-rattling government default. While negotiators said it was too soon to announce a deal, both sides voiced confidence that they were within striking distance of a compromise to lift the government’s borrowing cap…
GOP conservatives fume over debt ceiling compromises
Hard-line conservatives are fuming over the debt deal compromise being negotiated between Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and the White House — and they’re warning about collapsing GOP support. Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.) said he was “concerned about rumors” he was hearing about a deal that would raise the debt ceiling higher than what House Republicans…
35 House conservatives pitch IRS and COVID-19 funding repeal to push back debt X-date
A group of 35 House Republicans, made up of members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus and their allies, are upping the pressure on Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in debt ceiling negotiations and proposing funding clawbacks they say could push a potential default date back through the end of June. In a letter to McCarthy,…