Reps. Vern Buchanan and Jason Smith on Wednesday said they’re each committing seven-figure sums to House Republicans’ political arm, hauls that could bolster their campaigns for the top GOP spot on the Ways and Means Committee.
The pledges came during a National Republican Congressional Committee meeting. Buchanan announced his commitment in a release Wednesday morning; Punchbowl News reported Smith’s contributions, which his staff later confirmed.
The committee’s current ranking member, Kevin Brady of Texas, is retiring at the end of the year, and the departure of the previous heir apparent — former California GOP Rep. Devin Nunes, who resigned to head up former President Donald Trump’s media company — opened the race more widely.
