I wrote last week about the historically tiny majority House Republicans will hold as they attempt to enact the worst pillars of Donald Trump’s agenda at the start of the 119th Congress.
You can read the details here, but the short version is this: due to vacancies Trump himself created by appointing members of the House Republican conference to key administration positions (plus the whole Matt Gaetz saga), Republicans will start the year unable to lose one single vote in their conference in order to pass legislation (if all Democrats are present and vote together).
That means any whisper of rebellion is notable, with the caveat that far-right members of the House Freedom Caucus, specifically, have demonstrated a short attention span over the last two years; such rebellions can always be temporary. They may also swiftly throw in the towel on any anarchy or hijinks they pursue if it gets them crosswise with Trump himself, and Trump takes notice.
But just this week, there appeared to be a few new cracks in the party’s cartoonishly, historically un-unified front.
First, a wild card: Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-IN) announced Monday she will remain a Republican in theory, but that she is planning to boycott all House Republican conference meetings for the foreseeable future. She also said she would opt out of serving on committees in the new Congress. Here’s a section of her statement:
As a serious legislator and finance professional, not a clown, I am not going to continue being involved in circuses. I would rather spend my energy helping President Trump, his appointees and DOGE to deliver on their promises through reconciliation. And I will be working hard doing real work for the people I represent – not presentations in committees for the lobbyists, spectacles and posts on Facebook and X to raise money. The swamp will be back in business in four years if not drained through the law. Congress cannot fail President Trump and the American people again.
Spartz is a known oddity in Congress and the move doesn’t really make a ton of sense. While Republican leadership was reportedly made aware of her intentions, many were confused by the decision. According to Politico, some Republicans suspect she made the choice after getting boxed out of a post on the House Ways and Means Committee.
That said, the move could very well be a sign that Spartz will be an ongoing thorn in the side of the Republican conference, demanding her colleagues win her vote, which could end up causing major headaches for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) next year, if he is reelected speaker.
But before all of that can take place, Johnson also has to stave off a potential government shutdown before the funding deadlines on Friday. And every faction of his conference is upset with him for how he’s handling it — not just because he’s proposing a more expansive omnibus bill instead of a clean CR to extend funding at current levels into March, but because he’s also now working with Democrats to get it done.
Although the three-month funding bill being discussed is not yet final, it is reportedly sweeping in a way that tends to get far-right members’ hackles up. It would extend government funding at current levels until March 14, while also sending about $100 billion in hurricane relief to parts of the Southeast. It would provide about $10 billion in economic assistance to farmers, extend certain health programs, and reauthorize funds for U.S. workforce programs, among many other things.
House Republicans are upset because of the size of the package and that it includes provisions that Democrats have been pushing; they’re also angry with Johnson’s decision to deviate from plans to pass a clean CR to get though Christmas. One Freedom Caucus member, Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO), called the package a “total dumpster fire” on Tuesday.
But the problem is of their own making. Per Punchbowl this afternoon:
The reality is that Johnson had to accede to a host of Democratic demands because he needs their votes. Several senior House Republican leadership sources told us that more than 100 GOP lawmakers are likely to vote against the bill.
Again, a caveat: All of this drama may dissipate the second Trump is back in the White House. Instead of working with Democrats to actually govern the last two years, the majority of the Republican caucus has chosen to traffic in dysfunction while lambasting leadership for reaching across the aisle to avert multiple shutdowns. Working with Democrats will no longer be a necessity come January, but it will become one if one or more House Republicans decides to exercise an independent streak.
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omg frist!
Put the goddamn pressure on. My House rep is a D and my Senators are both Ds. (I live in MD, where we are still sane.) I called all three of them today and left messages for how they can talk to their GOP colleagues about these Cabinet nominations, especially for DoD and HHS. I do have some skin in that game. Don’t give up. Call your reps and tell them what you think. Don’t give up. Let them know, even if they are Ds, that we need them.
“We know they are lying, they know they are lying, they know we know they are lying, we know they know we know they are lying, but they are still lying.” – Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn
Single vote mandate.
That’s the more likely scenario: Republican reps are bold little screws until the big screw talks and we can expect unanimity in the caucus on any subject the big screw cares about.