GOP House Freedom Caucus Ends The Week In Total Chaos
Credit: Composite Screen Grabs Fox News/NBC
March 23, 2024

Friday was quite the finale to a few weeks of Freedom Caucus infighting. As House Speaker Mike Johnson continues to lose members of his slim majority to early retirement and with vacations on the horizon for the do-nothing Congress, Johnson mustered enough GOP votes to join Democrats and pass a funding package—despite the Freedom Caucus fuming about the deal and sending a letter urging their Republican colleagues to vote against it.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene decided to thank Johnson by threatening to oust him from the speakership.

The far-right Greene has been on the outs with many in the similarly far-right Freedom Caucus since they kicked her out, and was quickly hung out to dry by her colleagues. Rep. Matt Gaetz, a frequent Freedom Caucus ally who signed their letter against the deal, told CNN he wouldn’t be backing Greene’s proposal because “if we vacated this speaker, we would end up with a Democrat.”

Meanwhile, Freedom Caucus Chair Bob Good told Fox News reporter Aishah Hasnie, “I don’t know anybody who cares about what Marjorie Taylor Greene says.”

Earlier in the week, Rep. Ken Buck, who moved up his retirement in order to get away from the chaos permeating the House, was sent off in classic Freedom Caucus style. Buck’s last official day was Friday, but the Caucus made sure to officially vote him out of their ranks on Wednesday!

To add insult to injury, people were moving things out of Buck’s office on Thursday while he was still there, although no one is taking credit for that bit of passive-aggressiveness. Maybe Buck didn’t ask for a late check out?

To ensure that everybody went into their vacation on a high note, Freedom Caucus members held a press conference after the funding bill passed and vaguely threatened all 101 Republicans who voted for it. Rep. Chip Roy told the press, “I want to be very clear: Any Republican who votes for this bill, they own it, and they are the ones risking the election.”

Bon voyage!

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