Freedom Caucus
ChairmanScott Perry
Vice ChairmanJim Jordan
FoundedJanuary 26, 2015; 8 years ago (2015-01-26)
Split fromRepublican Study Committee
Ideology
Political position
National affiliationRepublican Party
Seats in House Republican Conference
45 / 222
Seats in the House
45 / 435
Seats in state upper chambers
19 / 1,987
Seats in state lower chambers
76 / 5,413
Website
Campaign website
State Freedom Caucus Network website
This article is part of a series on
Conservatism
in the United States
Flag of the United States.svg
Schools
Principles
History
Intellectuals
Politicians
Jurists
Commentators
Works
Parties
Think tanks
Other organizations
Media
Variants and movements
See also
 Conservatism portal
flag United States portal

The Freedom Caucus, also known as the House Freedom Caucus, is a congressional caucus consisting of Republican members of the United States House of Representatives. It is generally considered to be the most conservative and farthest-right bloc within the House Republican Conference.[1][2][3][4][5] The caucus was formed in January 2015 by a group of conservatives and Tea Party movement members,[6][7] with the aim of pushing the Republican leadership to the right.[2] Its first chairman, Jim Jordan, described the caucus as a "smaller, more cohesive, more agile and more active" group of conservative representatives.[8]

The caucus is positioned right-wing[9] to far-right[10] on the political spectrum, with some members holding right-wing populist beliefs,[11][12] such as opposition to immigration reform.[13] The group takes hardline conservative positions and favors social conservativism and small government.[14][15] The group sought dozens of times to repeal the Affordable Care Act.[16] Established as an ultra-conservative alternative to the Republican Study Committee, the group initially emphasized fiscal conservatism and concerns about House rules, favoring budget cuts and a decentralization of power within the House of Representatives.[17][18] Later, the Freedom Caucus shifted its emphasis to loyalty to Donald Trump[17][19] and became what Politico described as "more populist and nationalist, but less bound by policy principles".[20] The caucus includes some members who are libertarians.[21][22] The caucus supports House candidates through its PAC, the House Freedom Fund.[23][24]

History

The caucus originated during the mid-January 2015 Republican congressional retreat in Hershey, Pennsylvania.[25] According to founding member Mick Mulvaney, "that was the first time we got together and decided we were a group, and not just a bunch of pissed-off guys".[26] Nine conservative Republican members of the House began planning a new congressional caucus separate from the Republican Study Committee and apart from the House Republican Conference. The founding members who constituted the first board of directors for the new caucus were Republican representatives Scott Garrett of New Jersey, Jim Jordan of Ohio, John Fleming of Louisiana, Matt Salmon of Arizona, Justin Amash of Michigan, Raúl Labrador of Idaho, Mulvaney of South Carolina, Ron DeSantis of Florida and Mark Meadows of North Carolina.[27]

Mick Mulvaney told Ryan Lizza of the New Yorker, "We had twenty names, and all of them were terrible. None of us liked the Freedom Caucus, either, but it was so generic and so universally awful that we had no reason to be against it." According to Lizza, "one of the working titles for the group was the Reasonable Nutjob Caucus."[26][28]

During the crisis over the funding of the Department of Homeland Security in early 2015, the caucus offered four plans for resolution, but all were rejected by the Republican leadership. One of the caucus leaders, Raúl Labrador, said the caucus would offer an alternative that the most conservative Republican members could support.[29][needs update]

Opposition to Speaker of the House John Boehner

The newly formed group declared that a criterion for new members in the group would be opposition to John Boehner as Speaker of the House and willingness to vote against or thwart him on legislation that the group opposed.[30]

The House Freedom Caucus was involved in the resignation of Boehner on September 25, 2015, and the ensuing leadership battle for the new speaker.[31] Members of the caucus who had voted against Boehner for speaker felt unfairly punished, accusing him of cutting them off from positions in the Republican Study Committee and depriving them of key committee assignments.[32][33] Boehner found it increasingly difficult to manage House Republicans with the fierce opposition of conservative members of the Republican Party in the House, and he sparred with those House Republicans in 2013 over their willingness to shut down the government in pursuit of goals such as repealing the Affordable Care Act. These Republicans later created and became members of the Freedom Caucus when it was created in 2015.[30][34][35][36]

After Boehner resigned as speaker, Kevin McCarthy, the House majority leader, was initially the lead contender to succeed him, but the Freedom Caucus withheld its support.[37] However, McCarthy withdrew from the race on October 8, 2015, after appearing to suggest that the Benghazi investigation's purpose had been to lower the approval ratings of Hillary Clinton.[38][39] On the same day as McCarthy's withdrawal, Reid Ribble resigned from the Freedom Caucus saying he had joined to promote certain policies and could not support the role that it was playing in the leadership race.[40]

On October 20, 2015, Paul Ryan announced that his bid for the speaker of the United States House of Representatives was contingent on an official endorsement by the Freedom Caucus.[41] While the group could not reach the 80% approval that was needed to give an official endorsement, on October 21, 2015, it announced that it had reached a supermajority support for Ryan.[42] On October 29, 2015, Ryan succeeded Boehner as the speaker of the House.[43]

On October 30, 2017, Vanity Fair published an interview with Boehner, who said of the Freedom Caucus: "They can't tell you what they're for. They can tell you everything they're against. They're anarchists. They want total chaos. Tear it all down and start over. That's where their mindset is."[44]

Backlash in 2016

The group faced backlash from the Republican Party establishment during the 2016 election cycle.[45] One of its members, Congressman Tim Huelskamp, a Tea Party Republican representing Kansas' First District, was defeated during a primary election on August 2, 2016, by Roger Marshall.[46]

During Trump administration

Following the election of Donald Trump, Mulvaney said "Trump wants to turn Washington upside down – that was his first message and his winning message. We want the exact same thing. To the extent that he's got to convince Republicans to change Washington, we're there to help him ... and I think that makes us Donald Trump's best allies in the House."[47] Freedom Caucus vice chair Jim Jordan said that during the Trump administration, the Freedom Caucus shifted focus from passing legislation to defending the President.[48]

Rejection of American Health Care Act in 2017

On March 24, 2017, the American Health Care Act (AHCA), the House Republican bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, was withdrawn by Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan because it lacked the votes to pass, due in large part to opposition from Freedom Caucus Republicans who believed that the replacement provisions had the effect of failing to repeal some elements of the original Affordable Care Act.[49][50][51]

Two days later, President Donald Trump publicly criticized the Freedom Caucus and other right-wing groups, such as the Club for Growth and Heritage Action, that opposed the bill. Trump tweeted: "Democrats are smiling in D.C. that the Freedom Caucus, with the help of Club For Growth and Heritage, have saved Planned Parenthood & Obamacare!"[52][53] On the same day, Congressman Ted Poe of Texas resigned from the Freedom Caucus.[54] On March 30, 2017, Trump "declared war" on the Freedom Caucus, sending a tweet urging Republicans to "fight them" in the 2018 midterm elections "if they don’t get on the team" (i.e., support Trump's proposals).[55] Vocal Freedom Caucus member Justin Amash responded by accusing Trump of "succumb[ing] to the D.C. Establishment."[56]

Trump later developed a closer relationship with the caucus chair, Mark Meadows.[57] In April 2018, Trump described three caucus members – Meadows, Jim Jordan, and Ron DeSantis – as "absolute warriors" for their defense of him during the course of the Special Counsel investigation.[58]

During first impeachment of Trump

In May 2019, the Freedom Caucus officially condemned one of its founding members, Justin Amash, after he called for the impeachment of President Trump over the Trump–Ukraine scandal.[59] Amash, an outspoken libertarian, announced in June 2019 that he had left the caucus; later the same year, he left the Republican Party and joined the Libertarian Party.[60][61]

During the impeachment inquiry against Trump, and subsequent first impeachment of Trump, the caucus emerged as a chief defender of Trump during the proceedings.[62][63]

Meadows' appointment as WH chief of staff and Liz Cheney criticism

In March 2020, former Freedom Caucus chair Mark Meadows was appointed as White House chief of staff, replacing Mick Mulvaney, who was also a founding member of the Freedom Caucus.[64]

Freedom Caucus members have called on Liz Cheney to resign as Chair of the House Republican Conference, due to her vocal criticism of Trump's foreign policy, response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and use of social media,[65] leading to her firing May 12, 2021, and replacement by Elise Stefanik two days later.

2020 National Defense Authorization Act

In December 2020, the caucus sided with Donald Trump and opposed the NDAA on the grounds that it did not include a provision to repeal Section 230.[66]

Role in attempting to overturn 2020 election and opposition to second Trump impeachment

After Trump lost the his bid for reelection in November 2020, many members of the Freedom Caucus supported Trump's attempt to overturn the election results. In early December 2020, amid pressure from Trump on congressional Republicans to help him subvert the election outcome, two dozen House Republicans, including many Freedom Caucus members, sent a letter to Trump asking him to order his Attorney General, William P. Barr, to appoint a Justice Department special counsel to investigate supposed election "irregularities," even though Barr had previously acknowledged that there was no evidence justifying such a step.[67] Several Freedom Caucus members met with officials at Trump's White House in December 2020, discussing ways to overturn the election results during the 2021 United States Electoral College vote count.[68] Most Freedom Caucus members objected to the counting of the electoral votes that formalized Trump's defeat.[69] During the second impeachment of Donald Trump for incitement of insurrection, Freedom Caucus leadership and members demanded that Representative Liz Cheney, one of 10 Republicans who voted in favor of impeachment, resign from her role as chairwoman of the House Republican Conference.[70][71][72]

2021–present

America First Caucus and MAGA Squad

In April 2021, a faction within the Freedom Caucus, led by Paul Gosar and Marjorie Taylor Greene, attempted to form a new splinter group called the 'America First Caucus', along with Matt Gaetz. Senior members of the Freedom Caucus reportedly reacted with "fury" to the proposal, with Ken Buck publicly denouncing it.[73] The new caucus was later scrapped.[74]

Later, a faction emerged of Trump loyalists within the Freedom Caucus known as the 'MAGA Squad', which included Gosar, Greene, Gaetz, Madison Cawthorn, Louie Gohmert, Mo Brooks, Andy Biggs, Scott Perry and Lauren Boebert. It was "not a formal caucus", but was described as more radical than the mainstream Freedom Caucus.[75][76][77] The group supported primary challenges against incumbent Republicans during the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections.[78]

State Freedom Caucus Network

In December 2021, the Freedom Caucus officially expanded to the state level, establishing the 'State Freedom Caucus Network' in state legislatures to provide legislators with additional resources.[79] The group has state-level caucuses in ten states: Arizona, Idaho, Georgia, South Carolina, Mississippi, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Pennsylvania and Illinois.[80]

Aside from the caucuses affiliated with the State Freedom Caucus Network, several state-level caucuses describing themselves as the 'Freedom Caucus' exist in other state legislatures, including in Texas,[81] New Hampshire,[82] North Carolina,[83] Georgia,[84] Washington[85] and Michigan.[86]

Respect for Marriage Act

In July 2022, the caucus split over the Respect for Marriage Act, which recognized a statutory right to same-sex marriage. Chairman Scott Perry (R-PA) joined 46 other Republicans (as well as all Democrats) in voting for the bill, (Perry later voted against final passage of the bill) but the rest of the Freedom Caucus opposed it, adopting a formal position urging Senate Republicans to block the bill.[87] To take a formal position on legislation, the Freedom Caucus requires the support of 80% of the caucus's members.[87]

118th Congress House Republican leadership elections (2023)

Further information: 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election

In the November 2022 elections, Republicans narrowly regained control of the House of Representatives that opens in January 2023. The Freedom Caucus was actively involved in the ensuing House Republican leadership elections, but was divided over whether to challenge House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy's bid to be Speaker of the House of Representatives.[88] Before the internal House Republican election, the caucus issued an array of demands that would fundamentally change House procedure by weakening the power of the speaker and strengthening the power of both the caucus and rank-and-file House Republicans as a whole.[89] These included making it easier to oust a speaker by reviving the motion to vacate the chair; allowing 10% of the Republican conference to force a vote on any amendment, thus reducing the speaker's control over legislation; and codifying the Hastert rule ("majority-of-the-majority" rule), which would block all legislation except those supported by a majority of House Republicans.[89]

Former caucus chair Andy Biggs launched a challenge to McCarthy,[90] but McCarthy earned the Republican nomination for speaker,[91] by defeating Biggs in a 188–31 secret ballot vote,[92] with an additional five Republicans writing in other names.[93] McCarthy ran with the endorsement of other Freedom Caucus members, such as vice chair Jim Jordan,[94] David Schweikert,[95] and Marjorie Taylor Greene.[96] Caucus member Byron Donalds also ran for House Republican Conference chair, but lost to incumbent Elise Stefanik,[97] while member Andrew Clyde ran for House Republican Conference secretary, but lost to Lisa McClain.[98]

McCarthy needed 218 votes from the House floor to be elected speaker in the January 3, 2023 vote.[91] After winning the internal Republican nomination, some Freedom Caucus members became outspoken supporters of McCarthy, including Jordan, a former McCarthy rival[99] who was set to be chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.[100] Taylor Greene also backed McCarthy, saying that any alternative to McCarthy would be insufficiently right-wing.[100] Other caucus members resisted supporting McCarthy, with five members saying they would vote against him, although they have not coalesced around a specific alternative candidate.[100][101][99] A third group of caucus members did not publicly support or oppose McCarthy's speakership bid, seeking to extract concessions from him.[100][101] Because the House Republicans only have a narrow majority (222–212), McCarthy could not gain a majority unless nearly all Republicans voted for him.[93][101] McCarthy warned his internal opponents that the next speaker of the House could be chosen with House Democratic votes if the Republican caucus failed to unite around him.[92] In December 2022, seven hardline Republicans, including Freedom Caucus chairman Scott Perry and several members of the caucus, issued a letter demanding certain commitments from a speaker; the letter repeated many demands that the group had made in summer 2022, including securing an increase in Freedom Caucus representation in committee chairmanships and in the House Rules Committee; barring the House Republican leadership and House Republican leadership PACs from getting involved in primaries (as McCarthy has done); and restoring the motion to vacate the chair.[100] In January 2023, 19 Freedom Caucus members voted against McCarthy during the House floor vote for Speaker,[102] eventually allowing McCarthy to become Speaker only after he had agreed to make extensive House rules concessions to the rebels.[103]

Leadership

The current Chair of the caucus is Representative Scott Perry from Pennsylvania, with Representative Jim Jordan as the Deputy Chair. In January 2022, Representative Lauren Boebert was elected as Communications Chair, Representative Warren Davidson as Whip, and Representative Chip Roy as Policy Chair.[104]

Chair Term start Term end Tenure
1 Jim Jordan
Jim Jordan official photo, 114th Congress.jpg
February 11, 2015 (2015-02-11) January 3, 2017 (2017-01-03) 1 year, 327 days
2 Mark Meadows
Mark Meadows, Official Portrait, 113th Congress.jpg
January 3, 2017 (2017-01-03)[105] October 1, 2019 (2019-10-01) 2 years, 271 days
3 Andy Biggs
Andy Biggs official portrait.jpg
October 1, 2019 (2019-10-01)[106] January 1, 2022 (2022-01-01) 2 years, 92 days
4 Scott Perry
Scott Perry, official portrait, 116th congress.jpg
January 1, 2022 (2022-01-01) Incumbent[107] 1 year, 75 days

Membership

The map indicates the members of the Freedom Caucus as of February 2023
The map indicates the members of the Freedom Caucus as of February 2023

Membership policy

The House Freedom Caucus does not disclose the names of its members and membership is by invitation only.[108][109] The New York Times wrote in October 2015 that the caucus usually meets "in the basement of a local pub rather than at the Capitol".[110] The caucus acts as a bloc, with decisions that are supported by 80 percent made binding on all of its members, which has strengthened its influence among House Republicans.[2]

Historical membership

As the HFC does not publicize a full membership list, the known number of members at the start of each electoral cycle is listed below.

Starting membership in election cycles
Election year Overall seats Republican seats ±
2016
29 / 435
29 / 241
 New
2018
30 / 435
30 / 199
 Increase 1
2020
45 / 435
45 / 213
 Increase 15
2022
46 / 435
46 / 222
 Increase 1

Current members

A number of members have identified themselves, or have been identified by others, as belonging to the Freedom Caucus. There are at least 46 caucus members as of January 2023; those members include:

Alabama

Arizona

Colorado

Florida

Georgia

Idaho

Illinois

Louisiana

Maryland

Missouri

Montana

North Carolina

Ohio

Oklahoma

Pennsylvania

South Carolina

Tennessee

Texas

Virginia

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Former members

See also

Further reading

References

  1. ^ Carl, Jeremy (October 13, 2015). "The Freedom Caucus Is a Rebellion That Could Change the GOP's Future". Archived from the original on December 13, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d Desilver, Drew (October 20, 2015). "House Freedom Caucus: What is it, and who's in it?". Pew Research Center. Retrieved February 7, 2021.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ Ethier, Beth (January 26, 2015). "House Conservatives Form "Freedom Caucus" as Right-Wing Rebellion Continues". Slate Magazine. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  4. ^ Lauren Fox, Why (almost) everyone hates the House Freedom Caucus, CNN (March 24, 2017): "At first, there were just nine of them, but the group, which is considered the most right flank of the Republican conference, grew."
  5. ^ Mark Barrett, Meadows in line to lead House’s most conservative wing, ‘’Asheville Citizen-Times’’ (December 3, 2016): "the House Freedom Caucus, which occupies the furthest-right position on the ideological spectrum in the U.S. House..."
  6. ^ French, Lauren. "9 Republicans launch House Freedom Caucus". Politico. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  7. ^ Ferrechio, Susan (January 26, 2015). "Conservative lawmakers form House Freedom Caucus". Washington Examiner. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  8. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (February 11, 2015). "It's official: Rep. Jim Jordan now chairs the House Freedom Caucus". Cleveland. Archived from the original on February 16, 2019. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  9. ^ The Freedom Caucus has been widely described as right-wing:
  10. ^
  11. ^ Cottle, Michelle (April 7, 2017). "In The Freedom Caucus, Trump Meets His Match". The Atlantic.
  12. ^ Pally, Marcia (June 8, 2017). "A Tale of Two Covenants: Can America be Localist Without Being Exclusionary?". ABC News. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  13. ^ Bade, Rachael (June 27, 2018). "'I thought you were my friend': Immigration meltdown exposes GOP hostilities". Politico. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  14. ^ Reilly, Mollie (October 21, 2015). "House Conservatives Support Paul Ryan For Speaker, But Won't Formally Endorse Him". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 14, 2016. the group of hardline conservatives ... the socially conservative House Freedom Caucus
  15. ^ "Paul Ryan vs. House Freedom Caucus: Who will blink first in speaker's race?". Los Angeles Times. October 16, 2015. the group's small-government, socially conservative agenda
  16. ^ "After Boehner ouster, quiet period, Freedom Caucus attacks on IRS, ObamaCare". Fox News. December 10, 2016.
  17. ^ a b Melanie Zanona (March 8, 2022). "Republican leaders face threat of revived Freedom Caucus in GOP-led House". CNN. Past iterations of the group – which was formed as an ultra-conservative alternative to the Republican Study Committee but has since become more of a Trump loyalty club – were more focused on process and transparency concerns, as well as fiscal conservatism. Some of the more veteran members of the group are still emphasizing that as a top priority.
  18. ^ Jay Newton-Small (October 20, 2021). "How Paul Ryan Outfoxed House Conservatives". Time. The House Freedom Caucus has had a lot of demands of late: conditions under which they'd support anyone to be Speaker, changes they'd like to see made in the House to decentralize power, ... The as-of-yet unformed bill is almost guaranteed to have levels of spending the fiscally conservative Freedom Caucus will find highly objectionable – they have never supported any bipartisan deal that has come out of the Senate.
  19. ^ Swan, Jonathan (July 28, 2021). "Trump allies blame conservative leader for failed Texas endorsement". Axios. the Freedom Caucus – a group of ultra-conservative House Republicans who are fervently pro-Trump.
  20. ^ "Inside the House Freedom Caucus' identity crisis". Politico. April 29, 2022.
  21. ^ Friedman, Dan (July 13, 2016). "For These House Republicans, the NRA's Seal of Approval Isn't Enough". The Trace. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  22. ^ Loiaconi, Stephen (March 24, 2017). "For Freedom Caucus, defying Trump could have consequences". WJLA-TV. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2017. The House Freedom Caucus, a cadre of conservatives, libertarians and others who have shown no hesitation to buck the party leadership, has been heavily critical of the AHCA
  23. ^ Boguhn, Ally (June 21, 2016). "The House Freedom Fund Bankrolls Some of Congress' Most Anti-Choice Candidates". Rewire News. Archived from the original on December 11, 2018.
  24. ^ Wong, Scott (May 22, 2018). "Freedom Caucus bruised but unbowed in GOP primary fights". The Hill. Archived from the original on December 11, 2018.
  25. ^ Wofford, Ben. "Charlie Dent's War". Politico Magazine. Retrieved November 16, 2019.
  26. ^ a b Lizza, Ryan (December 7, 2015). "The War Inside the Republican Party". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved November 16, 2019.
  27. ^ French, Lauren (January 26, 2015). "9 Republicans launch House Freedom Caucus". Politico. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
  28. ^ "House Freedom Caucus was Born in Hershey". December 7, 2015. Retrieved November 16, 2019.
  29. ^ French, Lauren (March 3, 2015). "Conservatives offer John Boehner another DHS deal". Politico. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  30. ^ a b Lizza, Ryan. "A House Divided". The New Yorker. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  31. ^ Steinhauer, Jennifer (September 25, 2015). "John Boehner, House Speaker, Will Resign From Congress". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  32. ^ Marcos, Cristina. "Boehner rebels replaced on committee". The Hill. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  33. ^ Wong, Scott (June 27, 2015). "The dozen rebels targeted by GOP leaders". The Hill. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  34. ^ "A Brief History of the 2013 Government Shutdown". www.mediaite.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
  35. ^ Jacobs, Ryan (October 4, 2013). "32 Republicans Who Caused the Government Shutdown". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on September 27, 2018. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  36. ^ Lizza, Ryan (December 14, 2015). "A House Divided". Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  37. ^ "Kevin McCarthy Announces Run for Speaker of the House". The Atlantic. September 28, 2015. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  38. ^ Costa, Mike DeBonis, Robert; Helderman, Rosalind S. (October 8, 2015). "House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy drops out of race for House speaker". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  39. ^ "In Context: What Kevin McCarthy said about Hillary Clinton and Benghazi". PolitiFact. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  40. ^ a b "Rep. Ribble leaves Freedom Caucus over moves in leadership race". Politico. Retrieved October 9, 2015.
  41. ^ David M. Herszenhorn (October 21, 2015), "Freedom Caucus Is Key to Paul Ryan House Speaker Decision", The New York Times
  42. ^ DeBonis, Mike; Costa, Robert (October 21, 2015). "'Supermajority' of House Freedom Caucus to back Paul Ryan's speaker bid". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  43. ^ Steinhauer, Jennifer (October 29, 2015). "Paul Ryan Is Elected House Speaker, Hoping to Manage Chaos". The New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  44. ^ Nguyen, Tina (October 30, 2017). ""Idiots," "Anarchists," and "Assholes": Boehner Unloads on Republicans". The Hive. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
  45. ^ Schneider, Elena (August 15, 2016). "The GOP establishment strikes back". Politico. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  46. ^ Robertson, Joe; Tate, Curtis (August 2, 2016). "Tea party's Tim Huelskamp ousted by challenger Roger Marshall in Kansas congressional race". The Kansas City Star.
  47. ^ Bade, Rachael (November 13, 2016). "Can the Freedom Caucus survive Donald Trump?". Politico. Retrieved November 16, 2019.
  48. ^ "House Freedom Caucus plots return to relevance as GOP eyes majority". September 22, 2022.
  49. ^ "Breaking: House Republicans withdraw health care bill". KFOR-TV. CNN Wire. March 24, 2017. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Freedom Caucus members stood by their ideological objections to a bill they say does not go far enough in repealing Obamacare.
  50. ^ Shannon Pettypiece Jennifer Jacobs & Billy House, Trump Meets Freedom Caucus and Result Is Legislative Disaster, Bloomberg (March 25, 2017).
  51. ^ Eliza Collins, Collapse of Obamacare repeal plan puts Freedom Caucus in complicated spot, USA Today (March 24, 2017): "While the bill faced critics from all factions of the party, no group played more of a role in sinking the legislation than the Freedom Caucus."
  52. ^ "Trump tweets about Democrats, Freedom Caucus after health care bill fails". CBS News. March 26, 2017.
  53. ^ Weber, Joseph (March 26, 2017). "Trump hits Freedom Caucus, Washington conservatives for nixing ObamaCare overhaul". Fox News.
  54. ^ Abby Livingston, "U.S. Rep. Ted Poe resigns from Freedom Caucus", Texas Tribune (March 26, 2017).
  55. ^ Glenn Thrush, "'We Must Fight Them': Trump Goes After Conservatives of Freedom Caucus", The New York Times (March 30, 2017).
  56. ^ Jordan Fabian, Trump threatens to 'fight' Freedom Caucus in midterms, The Hill (March 30, 2017).
  57. ^ Golshan, Tara (August 28, 2017). "Meet the most powerful man in the House". Vox. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
  58. ^ Cheney, Kyle (May 7, 2018). "Trump's GOP 'warriors' lead charge against Mueller". Politico. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
  59. ^ "House Freedom Caucus votes to condemn Amash's impeachment comments". The Hill. May 20, 2019.
  60. ^ a b Byrd, Haley; Sullivan, Kate (June 11, 2019). "Justin Amash leaves the conservative Freedom Caucus". CNN.
  61. ^ Alex Moe and Dennis Romero (April 28, 2020). "Rep. Justin Amash explores Libertarian presidential run". NBC News.((cite web)): CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  62. ^ Swanson, Ian (October 8, 2019). "Freedom Caucus demands release of full Volker transcript". TheHill. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  63. ^ Andrews, Natalie; Wise, Lindsay (November 8, 2019). "House Freedom Caucus Emerges as Trump's Main Defender". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  64. ^ "Trump Names Mark Meadows Chief of Staff, Ousting Mick Mulvaney". New York Times. March 6, 2020.
  65. ^ "House conservatives pile on Cheney at GOP conference meeting". Politico. July 21, 2020.
  66. ^ Gould, Joe (December 8, 2020). "Defying Trump, House approves defense bill with veto-proof majority". defensenews.com. Sightline Media Group. Retrieved January 24, 2020. The House Freedom Caucus, a bloc of roughly three-dozen conservatives, backed Trump's position Tuesday and said its members would vote against the bill.
  67. ^ Rachael Bade, Josh Dawsey & Tom Hamburger, Trump pressures congressional Republicans to help in his fight to overturn the election, Washington Post (December 10, 2020).
  68. ^ Farnoush Amiri, Evidence mounts of GOP involvement in Trump election schemes, Associated Press (May 1, 2022).
  69. ^ Keith Newell (November 17, 2022). "2020 election objectors overwhelmingly won reelection, but largely raised less money than the average incumbent Republican". OpenSecrets.org. Center for Responsive Politics.
  70. ^ Mike DeBonis, Josh Dawsey & Seung Min Kim, Several senior Republicans join impeachment push, Washington Post (January 13, 2021).
  71. ^ Catie Edmondson, Cheney facing internal backlash for impeachment vote as Republican rifts deepen over Trump., New York Times (January 14, 2021).
  72. ^ Lindsey McPherson, House impeaches Trump in wake of mob attack on Capitol, Roll Call (January 13, 2021).
  73. ^ Solender, Andrew (April 17, 2021). "America First Caucus Rejected By Right-Wing Freedom Caucus". Forbes. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  74. ^ Diaz, Daniella (April 18, 2021). "Marjorie Taylor Greene scraps planned launch of controversial 'America First' caucus amid blowback from GOP". CNN. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  75. ^ Ball, Molly (June 14, 2022). "How the 'MAGA Squad' Is Building Power to Control the Next Congress". Time. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  76. ^ Alemany, Jacqueline; Sotomayor, Marianna; Dawsey, Josh (November 21, 2021). "A MAGA squad of Trump loyalists sees its influence grow amid demands for political purity among Republicans". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  77. ^ Bedayn, Jesse (November 11, 2022). "Trump loyalist Boebert's reelection bid could go to recount". ABC News. The Associated Press / Report for America. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  78. ^ Itkowitz, Colby (December 26, 2021). "House MAGA squad seeks to expand by boosting challengers to fellow Republicans". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  79. ^ Picket, Kerry (December 2, 2021). "House Freedom Caucus plans expansion to state lawmakers". The Washington Times. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  80. ^ "Home: Find Your Local Representatives". State Freedom Caucus Network. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
  81. ^ "The Back Mic: Phelan on Democratic Chair Fight, Senate Election Drawing Listed, Freedom Caucus Adds Four Members". The Texan. January 13, 2023. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  82. ^ Mahaleris, Andrew (April 9, 2021). "NH Freedom Caucus Calls House Budget a Big Win, But Changes Are Coming". NH Journal. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  83. ^ "N.C. Rep. Kidwell, Hanig named to reformation of NC House Freedom Caucus". WNCT. January 29, 2021. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  84. ^ "State Rep. Announces Creation of Georgia Freedom Caucus". Metro Atlanta CEO. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  85. ^ "Members". Official Website of the Senate Freedom Caucus. October 21, 2014. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
  86. ^ "New 'Freedom Caucus' launches, targets Michigan House rules". The Detroit News. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  87. ^ a b Carney, Jordain (August 24, 2022). "The House Freedom Caucus is urging Senate Republicans to oppose a same-sex marriage bill. Their chairman voted for it". Politico. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  88. ^ Beavers, Olivia; Carney, Jordain (November 10, 2022). "House Freedom Caucus ties itself in knots over challenging McCarthy". Politico. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  89. ^ a b Matt Fuller, Sam Brodey & Zachary Petrizzo, Kevin McCarthy’s Speakership Is in Trouble Before It Starts, Daily Beast (November 10, 2022).
  90. ^ Brooks, Emily (November 14, 2022). "Rep. Andy Biggs to challenge McCarthy for Speaker". The Hill. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  91. ^ a b Walsh, Deirdre (November 15, 2022). "McCarthy nominated speaker in internal GOP vote but he faces conservative resistance". National Public Radio. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  92. ^ a b Erin Doherty & Andrew Solender, McCarthy: Democrats could influence House speaker pick if GOP doesn't unite, Axios (November 29, 2022).
  93. ^ a b Philip Elliott, The NeverKevins Can Still Block McCarthy's Bid for Speaker, Time (November 22, 2022).
  94. ^ Tully-McManis, Katherine (November 10, 2022). "Freedom Caucus prepares to flex". Politico. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  95. ^ Solender, Andrew (November 15, 2022). "Freedom Caucus fires its warning shot at McCarthy". Axios. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  96. ^ "Marjorie Taylor Greene breaks with far-right allies..." Axios. Axios. November 14, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  97. ^ Olson, Tyler (November 4, 2022). "Byron Donalds, seeking a House GOP leadership post, wants to decentralize power away from party leaders". Fox News. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  98. ^ "Rep. Lisa McClain wins race to become next House Republican conference secretary". Washington Examiner. November 15, 2022.
  99. ^ a b Olivia Beavers & Jordain Carney, Wanted by McCarthy critics: 1 qualified alternative speaker, Politico (December 11, 2022).
  100. ^ a b c d e Emily Brooks, Seven hard-line House Republicans lay out Speaker demands amid McCarthy opposition, The Hill (December 9, 2022).
  101. ^ a b c Andrew Solender, McCarthy's math problem, Axios (November 30, 2022).
  102. ^ "How Far Right Are the 20 Republicans Who Voted Against McCarthy?". New York Times. January 4, 2023.
  103. ^ "House passes rules package that was at heart of McCarthy's speaker battle". CBS News. January 10, 2023.
  104. ^ "Rep. Boebert Elected as House Freedom Caucus Communications Chair". Representative Lauren Boebert. January 20, 2022. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  105. ^ "Mark Meadows Elected House Freedom Caucus Chairman". Roll Call. December 6, 2016. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  106. ^ Zanona, Melanie. "House Freedom Caucus picks Andy Biggs as new chairman". Politico. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  107. ^ Falconer, Rebecca (November 16, 2021). "House Freedom Caucus elects GOP Rep. Scott Perry as next chair". Axios. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  108. ^ a b Huetteman, Emmarie (March 20, 2017). "On Health Law, G.O.P. Faces a Formidable Policy Foe: House Republicans". The New York Times. Retrieved March 28, 2017. So secretive that it will not disclose the names of its members, […] the roughly three dozen
  109. ^ Benen, Steve (February 13, 2020). "House Freedom Caucus members move from the fringe to power". MSNBC. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  110. ^ Herszenhorn, David M. (October 7, 2015). "Hard-Line Republicans Want to Change More Than House Speaker". The New York Times. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  111. ^ "Committees and Caucuses | Representative Barry Moore". barrymoore.house.gov. January 3, 2021. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  112. ^ Wong, Scott (December 4, 2020). "McCarthy woos Freedom Caucus with eye on Speakership". The Hill. Retrieved June 7, 2021 – via MSN. Gary Palmer (Ala.), a Freedom Caucus member
  113. ^ a b c Ivory, Danielle; Smart, Charlie; Yourish, Karen (January 4, 2023). "How Far Right Are the 20 Republicans Who Voted Against McCarthy?". The New York Times. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  114. ^ Hansen, Ronald J. (March 24, 2017). "Two Arizona Republican House members helped sink 'Obamacare' repeal". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  115. ^ Sanchez, Yvonne Wingett; Hansen, Ronald J. (July 16, 2018). "McCain and Flake ripped Trump's Putin performance, but other Ariz. reps mostly silent". Arizona Republic. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
  116. ^ Garcia, Eric (July 18, 2018). "Gosar Endorses Ward Over McSally in Arizona Senate Race". Roll Call. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  117. ^ "Committees and Caucuses | Representative Lauren Boebert". boebert.house.gov. January 3, 2021. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  118. ^ "In HBO film, Ken Buck suggests he will leave Congress soon". The Denver Post. August 2, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  119. ^ Some sources state that Gaetz is "close to" the caucus, e.g.: Lucas, John (July 13, 2018). "President Trump takes a break from his European visit to endorse Rep. Matt Gaetz". The Capitolist. Retrieved October 15, 2018. / Smith, Allan; Perticone, Joe (January 13, 2018). "The most conservative congressmen are going all-out to fight for Trump against Mueller and the Russia probe". Business Insider. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
  120. ^ Provenzano, Brianna. "Who's in the House Freedom Caucus? Here's a list of Republicans in the group". Mic. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  121. ^ "Anna Paulina Luna Says Colleague 'Threatened' Her Over McCarthy Stance". Newsweek. December 31, 2022. In a statement issued to Newsweek on Saturday morning, Luna said: "The member that called me was NOT MTG. Marjorie came down and helped me in my primary and is also a fellow member of the Freedom Caucus. She would never do that to me."
  122. ^ "As House Republicans Brace for Losses, Freedom Caucus Prepares for Growth". Roll Call. October 31, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  123. ^ "House Freedom Caucus Could Add 7 New Conservative Members". The Daily Signal. November 4, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  124. ^ "Byron Donalds says he'll join House Freedom and Black Congressional Caucuses · the Floridian". September 18, 2020.
  125. ^ Haroun, Azmi. "13 members of the pro-Trump House Freedom Caucus refused to condemn Myanmar's generals who violently overthrew elected leaders". Business Insider. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  126. ^ "3 strikes for McCarthy – but he's not out yet". Politico. January 3, 2022.
  127. ^ "Caucuses". U.S. Representative Greene. January 3, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  128. ^ "Committees and Caucuses". Congressman Russ Fulcher. Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  129. ^ "Who is Mary Miller, Republican representative for Illinois' 15th Congressional District?". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  130. ^ "Committees & Caucuses". Congressman Clay Higgins. December 13, 2012. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  131. ^ Desiderio, Andrew (November 28, 2018). "Meet the Double Agent Who Now Controls House Conservatives". The Daily Beast. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  132. ^ Campbell, Colin. "Rep. Andy Harris, House Freedom Caucus send letter urging Trump to reopen economy". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  133. ^ DeSilver, Drew (January 23, 2023). "Freedom Caucus likely to play a bigger role in new GOP-led House. So who are they?". Pew Research Center. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  134. ^ "Committees and Caucuses". U.S. Representative Matt Rosendale. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  135. ^ "Greg Murphy wins reelection to 3rd Congressional District". North State Journal. November 8, 2022.
  136. ^ HFF (September 13, 2019), Two Big Wins in North Carolina, House Freedom Fund
  137. ^ a b c d e f g French, Lauren (January 26, 2015). "9 Republicans launch House Freedom Caucus". Politico. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  138. ^ "Boehner's successor joins Freedom Caucus". Politico. June 9, 2016.
  139. ^ a b c d "House Freedom Caucus Forms 'Fight Club' in House". 218. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2015.
  140. ^ Palmer, Anna; French, Lauren (February 5, 2015). "Ron DeSantis, Jeff Duncan quit House whip team". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  141. ^ Lovegrove, Jamie (July 2, 2018). "Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows to headline South Carolina GOP fundraiser". The Post and Courier. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
  142. ^ Roche, Darragh (November 10, 2022). "Full list of Freedom Caucus Members after 2022 midterms results". Newsweek. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  143. ^ Broden, Scott (April 22, 2015). "DesJarlais raises $144,677 for 2016 campaign". The Daily News Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  144. ^ "Committees". Congressman Mark Green. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  145. ^ Amiri, Farnoush; Jalonick, Mary Clare (May 2, 2022). "Jan. 6 panel wants answers from GOP's Brooks, Biggs, Jackson". Associated Press. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  146. ^ Daniella Diaz (February 25, 2021). "House Freedom Caucus members question Liz Cheney's leadership again after her latest Trump comments". CNN. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  147. ^ "Freedom Caucus members to huddle with Trump". The Hill. June 3, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
  148. ^ "Accountability For China, COVID-19 Relief Package Among Issues To Be Addressed By House Freedom Caucus Today" (Press release). Falkirk Center for Faith and Liberty. PR Newswire. July 27, 2020. Retrieved April 1, 2021 – via Associated Press. HFC Members: ... Michael Cloud
  149. ^ "Committees and Caucuses". Representative Bob Good. January 3, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  150. ^ Fox, Lauren; Raju, Manu; Grayer, Annie; Diaz, Daniella (May 12, 2021). "Elise Stefanik faces increased conservative headwinds in rise to leadership". CNN. Retrieved June 7, 2021. Freedom Caucus member Ben Cline
  151. ^ Zanona, Melanie. "Freedom Caucus member tests positive for coronavirus". Politico. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  152. ^ Zanona, Melanie. "GOP Rep. Mooney wants to condemn lawmakers who call on Trump to concede". Politico. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  153. ^ Bridget Bowman (February 11, 2020), Outside groups flock to Wisconsin race to replace Sean Duffy, Roll Call, archived from the original on November 25, 2020, retrieved May 20, 2020
  154. ^ Arnsdorf, Isaac; Sotomayor, Marianna (November 2, 2022). "New class of combative MAGA candidates poised to roil House GOP". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  155. ^ Marcos, Christina (April 27, 2017). "Texas Republican departs Freedom Caucus". The Hill. Retrieved April 28, 2017.
  156. ^ Livingston, Abby (March 26, 2017). "U.S. Rep. Ted Poe resigns from Freedom Caucus". Texas Tribune. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
  157. ^ @DaveBratVA7th (March 13, 2015). "Proud to be part of House Freedom Caucus" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  158. ^ a b Fuller, Matt (September 16, 2015). "House Freedom Caucus Loses Member Over Planned Parenthood". CNN. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  159. ^ Wong, Scott; Shabad, Rebecca; Marcos, Cristina (February 26, 2015). "House will vote Friday to prevent Homeland Security shutdown". The Hill. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  160. ^ "Congressman Cawthorn Joins the House Freedom Caucus" (Press release). Madison Cawthorn. October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  161. ^ Newhauser, Daniel; Mimms, Sarah; Roubein, Rachel (February 26, 2015). "Boehner Has a Plan to Avoid a DHS Shutdown – But It Might Not Pass". National Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  162. ^ "Senate confirms Fleming as assistant secretary of commerce for economic development". Bossier Press-Tribune. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
  163. ^ Portnoy, Jenna (March 15, 2017). "Three Virginia GOP congressmen, including Rep. Tom Garrett in 5th District, line up against GOP health care plan". The Roanoke Times. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  164. ^ "Rep. Gohmert: Dem's Equality Act is "All About Power," Eviscerates First Amendment". Louie Gohmert. February 25, 2021. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  165. ^ a b Darnell, Tim (March 19, 2015). "Can the House Freedom Caucus save the GOP?". Peach Pundit. Archived from the original on July 23, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  166. ^ "Tim Huelskamp, Anti-Establishment House Republican, Loses Primary in Kansas". New York Times. August 3, 2016.
  167. ^ "Doug Lamborn: Health care bill's failure a 'setback,' not the end of effort to repeal Obamacare". Colorado Springs Gazette. March 24, 2017.
  168. ^ Hallerman, Tamar (March 2, 2017). "Barry Loudermilk quietly leaves the House Freedom Caucus". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on April 15, 2017. Retrieved March 7, 2017.
  169. ^ a b Wong, Scott; Marcos, Cristina (June 27, 2015). "The dozen rebels targeted by GOP leaders". The Hill. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  170. ^ Fox, Lauren (March 26, 2017). "Rep. Poe resigns from House Freedom Caucus". CNN. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
  171. ^ "Virginia Republican who officiated gay wedding loses nomination for Congress". The Guardian. Associated Press. June 14, 2020. Retrieved March 26, 2021. Riggleman, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, ...
  172. ^ "U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher endorses Dr. Kelli Ward for United States Senate". January 23, 2018. Archived from the original on January 24, 2018. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
  173. ^ Schelzig, Erik (July 2, 2018). "GOP Rep. Rohrabacher campaigns for Matheny". The Tennessee Journal. Archived from the original on July 28, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
  174. ^ Mauriello, Tracie (January 6, 2017). "Freedom Caucus may play role in alternate Obamacare repeal timeline". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved January 14, 2017.
  175. ^ Cohn, Nate; Bloch, Matthew; Quealy, Kevin (February 19, 2018). "The New Pennsylvania House Districts Are In. We Review the Mapmakers' Choices". The Upshot. The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  176. ^ Jones, Ja'han (February 6, 2023). "Freedom Caucus founder ditches the group for unlikely reason". MSNBC. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  177. ^ Traub, Alex (February 9, 2021). "Ron Wright, Texas Conservative, Dies at 67". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  178. ^ "Freedom Caucus Member Rep. Ted Yoho Weighs In On Government Shutdown". National Public Radio. January 3, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2021. Ted Yoho is a member of the Freedom Caucus.

External links

Ideological caucuses in the United States Congress
Tea Party movement
United States Congress
Categories