WASHINGTON — The man who would be speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, can expect to have his hands full trying to herd the particularly fractious cats of the Republican Conference next year. And if the House Freedom Caucus has its way, he’ll have to make do with one arm tied behind his back.
The far-right Freedom Caucus is demanding a suite of changes to the Republican Conference rules and House rules that would reverse a decadelong trend of power consolidating in the speaker’s grip. Done right, such a shift could herald a renaissance of bipartisan legislating, experts say. But done wrong, it will exacerbate partisan tensions and empower extremists, all but ensuring legislative deadlock that could force federal government shutdowns and a sovereign debt crisis.
“There’s a real question about whether the Freedom Caucus members want to pursue a positive legislative agenda or whether their goal is to simply be an agent of chaos,” said Daniel Schuman, policy director at Demand Progress.
