A small bloc of conservative Republicans are holding the floor of the House of Representatives hostage, forcing Republican leaders to cancel votes for the rest of the week. For the second straight day, the conservatives blocked several leadership-backed bills from moving forward Wednesday in protest of Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-California) handling of the debt deal he struck with President Joe Biden. The brazen revolt means this hard-right faction, made up mostly of House Freedom Caucus members, has ground legislating on the chamber floor to a halt, undermining the Republican majority and McCarthy’s power. By Wednesday evening, after hours of talks with the hard-liners, McCarthy told reporters that no votes would be held for the rest of the week and that the House would come back into session Monday. The conservatives said McCarthy’s debt deal with Biden did not cut enough spending, and they accused GOP leaders of retaliating against conservative Representative Andrew Clyde, (R-Georgia), for having voted against the rule on the debt package last week. GOP leaders had hoped to try again Wednesday afternoon to pass the rule governing a suite of bills, including two to protect gas stoves from federal bans. But shortly after noon, the House went into recess, a sign no agreement had been reached between Republican leadership and the far-right rebels who have managed to exploit the GOP’s fragile 222-212 majority.
While the House remains at a standstill, for today, the Senate will consider the nominations of Dilawar Syed to be Deputy Administrator of the Small Business Administration and Molly R. Silfen to be a Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims for a term of fifteen years.
