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House Freedom Caucus blasts debt deal: 'This is a career-defining vote for every Republican'

Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) reportedly floated forcing a vote to remove McCarthy during a Freedom Caucus call Monday evening.

Published: May 30, 2023 12:07pm

Updated: May 30, 2023 1:12pm

The House Freedom Caucus, whose membership consists of some of the most conservative Congressional Republicans, is holding a meeting Tuesday to address the debt ceiling deal House Speaker Kevin McCarthy struck with President Joe Biden amid reports that they may be considering ousting McCarthy from his position.

More than ten House Republicans have publicly expressed disapproval over McCarthy's deal with Biden. They say that the deal fails to cut enough spending and raises the debt limit by $4 trillion, rather than the $1.5 trillion that the House voted for. 

"Not one Republican should vote for this deal. It is a bad deal," Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) said during the caucus press conference on Tuesday. He said the Freedom Caucus, which has 45 members, will oppose the bill.

"Washington is lying again," Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said. "This bill has no cap in raising the debt. Just a date in the future. We have no idea what that number's going to look like." 

"It's not just that every Republican should vote against this," Rep. Dan Bishop (R-N.C.) said, "This is a career-defining vote for every Republican."

One of the biggest GOP complaints about the deal is that it cuts some funding for the Internal Revenue Service but it still allocates billions of additional dollars to the agency. Another concern is that the deal does not cut spending back to pre-COVID-19 levels.

Freedom Caucus Republicans are also reportedly threatening McCarthy's speakership, which he only won in January after 15 rounds of voting. The historic number of rounds was largely due to dissenting votes from caucus members. 

Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) reportedly floated forcing a vote to remove McCarthy during a Freedom Caucus call Monday evening, NBC News reported citing two sources familiar with the call.

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry (R-Pa.) suggested that it is too soon to issue such an extreme threat, but said members could discuss the issue further upon returning to Washington.

Madeleine Hubbard is an international correspondent for Just the News. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram.

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