Posted on Oct 9, 2015
How much power does the House Freedom Caucus actually have?
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Is the House Freed Caucus holding our Government Hostage?
Posted in these groups: 
Congress
Congressional Fellow
Republicans
LeadershipU.S. House of Representatives
Congress Congressional Fellow Republicans LeadershipU.S. House of Representatives
Posted 9 y ago
Responses: 8
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All you need to stop the machine is a small block of votes. That's how Congress was designed to work! With a divided house, a little group from within the Majority party can cause chaos!
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I agree with BG David Fleming III. It's not power to lead or direct as much as power to disrupt. The worst part is they are doing so with GOP structural support. I suspect that if the Republican party wants to survive, it will need to purge the worst of them right before election time. Let them raise their own funds, build their own infrastructure and run as an independent.
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Republicans have 247 members in the House. The Freedom Caucus has 40-ish members. The House "magic number" to pass legislation is 218 for 50%+1.
In other words, the Freedom Caucus can stop the Hastert Rule any time they want.
In other words, the Freedom Caucus can stop the Hastert Rule any time they want.
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LTC Kevin B.
SGT Jeremiah B. - From what I've read, some moderate Democrats were wiling to vote for him, but he would have had to agree to some things for their support (which is fair game in a political world). He was never wiling to meet any of those requests/demands (pick your preferred term). One of those requirements, according to what I've read, was bringing up the Senate's immigration reform bill for a vote, which he wouldn't do. So, he chose to seek the support from the Freedom Caucus rather than from the moderate Democrats. That emboldened the Freedom Caucus. I'm not saying party loyalty didn't play into his decision; I'm sure that did. He probably thought that he couldn't trust the Democrats to follow through, so he didn't want to risk it.
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SGT Jeremiah B.
LTC Kevin B. - That's something I never understood. It seems to me that putting something up for a vote would be an easy compromise. If it had a chance to pass, he should never have blocked it to begin with.
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LTC Kevin B.
SGT Jeremiah B. - Welcome to life in today's hyperpartisan Congress. If a bill will pass with mostly opposition votes, and the opposition doesn't control the House (or Senate, for that matter), then the bill never comes up for a vote. Truthfully, I think the parliamentarian rules sometimes undermine our Constitution. I mean...is it constitutional that one person (the Speaker or the Majority Leader) can block legislation that the majority of the House or Senate supports? Is it constitutional that 41 Senators can block a bill supported by 59 Senators? Where in the Constitution does it require these supermajorities for basic legislation? Sometimes I wish every bill would come up for a vote. That way, every bill would have a chance for a vote, and everyone would be on record.
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LTC Kevin B.
SGT Jeremiah B. - And, they'd have time for all of those votes if they spent much less time fundraising.
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