As hard-line Republicans stage a rebellion in pursuit of an even more conservative reconciliation bill, signs of frustration are emerging in their own districts.
Many in the House Freedom Caucus spent Wednesday threatening to sink the bill as it went through the Rules Committee, calling for deeper cuts to spending. Rep. Andy Harris said Wednesday morning he was skeptical a deal could be reached this week. After a meeting at the White House, Republican leaders said they were still moving forward with the bill, reportedly claiming they would only make “minor changes.”
Last Friday, Reps. Josh Brecheen, Chip Roy, Andrew Clyde and Ralph Norman voted against allowing the bill out of the Budget Committee before eventually voting “present” over the weekend — showing a willingness to buck party leadership.
Republican hard-liners’ obstruction has caused confusion and impatience for some Republicans in these members’ states and districts.
“We’re such a pro-Trump state that it’s surprising to me that Josh is making such an issue on this bill,” Jim Dunlap, a veteran GOP strategist and former Oklahoma legislator, told NOTUS. “He knows with just a few Republicans they can make a big difference up there. He’s a good guy and I trust him, but it’s just playing a big card.”
Brecheen wants to repeal wind and solar subsidies included in Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and speed up the implementations of work requirements for welfare and safety-net programs. (GOP leadership has made concessions to Brecheen and other hard-liners including accelerating Medicaid work requirements and the phasing out of clean-energy tax credits.)
Oklahoma’s Republican attorney general, Gentner Drummond, was publicly critical of Brecheen’s efforts to block the bill.
“Pay attention, Oklahoma,” Drummond posted on X. “Our own Congressman is blocking Pres. Trump’s agenda, voting to KILL the Big, Beautiful Bill.”
“Voting no means everything goes back to the way it was before Donald Trump cut taxes — exactly what the Swamp prefers,” Drummond added in a second post.
Republicans who are questioning GOP holdouts’ decisions to threaten the bill argued that blocking the bill entirely over failing to reach ideal spending cuts is counterproductive to their party’s agenda.
Scott Anderson, who chairs the York County Republican Party (which Norman’s district in South Carolina encompasses), said it was a “win for President Trump” when the hard-liners allowed the bill to move to the floor for further negotiations.
“There are items in the bill that we would all like to see stronger, but also recognizing that we may not get everything we’d like given the narrow majority,” Anderson told NOTUS in a statement. “We appreciate Congressman Norman’s continued efforts to strengthen the bill. Ultimately, we are confident that we will not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”
In some cases though, Republican officials say some constituents find the additional spending cuts conservative members are pushing for — specifically to Medicaid — unpalatable.
Clyde’s district in Georgia, for example, has in recent years had constituents with a wider range of incomes, and thus will be more impacted if safety-net programs are cut, according to Ed Henderson, secretary of the Republican party in Rabun County, which is in Clyde’s district.
“Andrew doesn’t just have deeply red, affluent counties anymore,” Henderson told NOTUS. “A more metro chunk of counties are a part of the district now, and while we’re still reliably 80 to 85% Republican, we have an underbelly of people of limited incomes who are deeply impacted from Medicare and Social Security cuts.”
Pressure from the party to not be one of the few Republicans blocking the bill won’t work on Clyde though, Henderson said.
“Andrew is someone who is willing to rock the boat and cast a contrarian vote, even if he’s the only one in Congress doing so,” Henderson added.
Dunlap said Brecheen is the same way.
“No matter what the party tells him to do, he’s going to do what he believes is right,” Dunlap said. “I’ve known him a long time. He served in the state Senate, and you can’t tell Josh Brecheen what to do. If he thinks he needs to hold out, he will hold out.”
GOP leadership still does not appear closer to wrangling in hard-liners. Even after being presented with a “menu of things” the White House would not oppose, conservatives have indicated that they are still prepared to vote “no” on the current form of the bill.
Roy told reporters Wednesday morning that “there’s a long way to go” before the bill’s issues are solved, especially as Republican leadership continues to make concessions for moderates who oppose deeper cuts to Medicaid and blue-state Republicans who favor raising the state and local tax-deduction cap.
At least one Republican in Roy’s district told NOTUS that some of his constituents’ patience with his obstruction could soon run out, despite his local popularity.
“People love Roy here and are, like him, concerned about the national debt and want to see Medicaid reformed and waste, fraud and abuse stopped,” a party official with the Kendall County Republican Party said. “But they also want to see Donald Trump be successful. We want the bill passed now.”
“Kendall County will be the most happy with the bill just passing,” the party official added. “And we may not get all of exactly what we want, but we will get something.”
In a statement to NOTUS, Roy said he was being “open and honest” with his constituents about what he was fighting for in Washington.
“My constituents didn’t send me to Washington to not fight for every last bit of deficit reduction that otherwise is driving up the cost of living, or repeal corrupt programs like the IRA subsidies harming the Texas Hill Country,” Roy said. “I am proud to represent TX-21, and our team is hearing positive feedback on this fight. We will continue to work overtime with the White House to get the best bill possible.”
NOTUS also reached out to the offices of Norman, Brecheen and Clyde.
A spokesperson for Norman’s office said the lawmaker’s decision to vote Sunday night to move the process forward was “a sign of support for continued productive negotiations,” adding that he will continue to actively engage with Republican leadership to make sure the final bill “reflects Trump’s America First conservative agenda voters are demanding.”
“Our office deeply values input from constituents, and we’ve heard from a wide range of voices across York County and beyond who want to see more done to root out waste and tighten the bill,” the spokesperson said. “There’s also overwhelming agreement, particularly among conservative voters, that Washington should get this right, not just get it done.”
—
Calen Razor is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.