Some members of the hard-line Freedom Caucus are considering leaving the Republican Study Committee in the next Congress, potentially creating a split between two influential groups of House conservatives.
The House Freedom Caucus and its roughly 40 members have long clashed with the RSC over what tactics to use when pushing for conservative legislation.
“Certainly there are some HFC members who will not join RSC in the new Congress,” Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), a founding member of the Freedom Caucus, told The Hill on Monday. “I don’t plan to join again. I respect the work Bill Flores has done, but I just have not been as active with the group this Congress.”
The Freedom Caucus was formed in January of last year by nine lawmakers who felt the RSC had become too aligned with GOP leadership. At the time, one of the founding members of the caucus, Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.), had just lost the race for RSC chairman to Rep. Bill Flores (R-Texas).
Months before, Rep. Raúl Labrador (R-Idaho) had accused GOP leaders of twisting arms to help Flores win the contest, something Flores and the leadership team denied.
Via The Hill