Members of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus orchestrated an unusual play on the House floor during a rare election night, 5 p.m. pro forma session that resulted in killing, at least for now, a broadly popular bill that was set to hit the floor as soon as next week.
Reps. Garret Graves, R-La., and Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., had successfully rounded up the 218 signatures needed for a discharge petition to bypass GOP leaders and bring up bipartisan legislation that would repeal two long-standing provisions docking Social Security benefits for certain retirees. They were set to make their move as soon as Tuesday night by triggering a two-day clock to bring to the floor the special rule for immediate consideration of the bill.
With 330 co-sponsors, including now-Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who was one of the first to affix his name early in the 118th Congress, passage of the measure was all but guaranteed. GOP leaders were mulling simply bringing it to the floor under suspension of the rules, which skips a rule vote but requires two-thirds of members present and voting to pass.
