A decision by the far-right House Freedom Caucus members to go along with a tax deal proposed by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) that was similar to the one pushed by Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has some mainstream GOP lawmakers furious over the Congressional chaos they created that led to the California lawmakers ouster as speaker.
According to a report from the Washington Post, the Freedom Caucus agreed this week to go along with a top-line $1.59 trillion budget deal without the spending caps they previously demanded.
That demand has now withered away for the moment with the Post reporting, "the far-right flank’s acceptance came far too late for some House Republican colleagues, who expressed shock, anger and dismay over the time wasted on placating the Freedom Caucus."
Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) complained, "It could have saved ourselves some time," while noting the turmoil the House suffered after McCarthy's ouster led by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL).
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Close allies of McCarthy are even more furious.
One McCarthy insider fumed, "What this goes to show is that everything that’s been happening over the last few months is based entirely on ignorance or lack of information or understanding," before adding, "They’re just a bunch of idiots.”
The Post report adds that some Freedom Caucus members are also unhappy with the flip-flop, with Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) complaining, "This is absolutely unsustainable. We’re heading off the cliff. If you give [Democrats] pretty much everything that they want, you will never entice them, persuade them, leverage them into giving us the border security we need.”
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