House Republican leaders working to write and pass the spending bills that fund the government face a major hurdle: Their own party — especially their most powerful, arch-conservative faction — has spent the last decade assailing federal spending and, with growing frequency, casting vote after vote against it.
members of the House have supported spending bills less than half the time over the last dozen years, according to a New York Times analysis of such votes since 2011.
Hard-right lawmakers associated with the Freedom Caucus, which has been the most outspoken about slashing spending, have voted in favor of government funding bills less than 20 percent of the time.
Despite all of that, Speaker Kevin McCarthy, working to manage a right-wing revolt, has agreed to tailor the spending bills to the demands of a group of lawmakers who have rarely, if ever, supported such measures during their time in Congress.
The approach could make it difficult to move the bills through the House and place the chamber on a collision course with the Democrat-controlled Senate that could lead to a government shutdown this fall.
Persons:
—, Kevin McCarthy, Biden
Organizations:
Republican, New York Times, Freedom Caucus, Democrat