September 2017

vative members of the House Republican conference announced the formation of the House Freedom Caucus. The founding members were Scott Garrett of New Jersey; Jim Jordan of Ohio; John Fleming of Louisiana; Matt Salmon of Arizona; Justin Amash of Michigan; RaĂşl Labrador of Idaho; Mick Mulvaney of South Carolina; Ron DeSantis of Florida; and Mark Meadows of North Carolina.

They said their main purpose was to advocate for limited, constitutional government. “The House Freedom Caucus gives a voice to countless Americans who feel that Washington does not represent them. We support open, accountable, and limited government, the Constitution and the rule of law, and policies that promote the liberty, safety and prosperity for all Americans,� they declared in their mission statement. Jordan of Ohio was the first chairman of the caucus and said it would be a “smaller, more cohesive, more agile and more active� group of Republican conservatives.

Meadows said in a statement at the time of the creation of the Freedom Caucus that it would “provide a unified conservative voice in the House Republican Conference.� He added that he wanted to work with Republican leaders “to make the concerns of conservatives known as we work together to advance a pro-growth, limited government agenda in the House.�

A study of the Freedom Caucus by the Pew Research Center in 2015 identified 36 members in the group. It noted that more than 70 percent of its members were first elected to the House in 2010 or later. On average, they are younger than the rest of the House GOP and many are veterans of the Tea Party movement.

All are men. They want power shifted out of leadership to rank-and-file members. Membership to the Freedom Caucus is by invitation and the group seeks to act as a bloc on major issues. According to the caucus’s by-laws, if 80 percent of Freedom Caucus members agree on an issue, the entire group will vote as a bloc on the matter. Each member is given two exemptions per Congress. Many of the Freedom Caucus members are part of the larger Republican Study Committee, which has about 170 members.

Even though Republicans in the House hold a comfortable majority and could easily pass legislation without the support of Freedom Caucus members if a few Democrats joined them, they are loath to reach across the aisle in such a hyper-partisan environment. As a result, the House Freedom Caucus wields a disproportionate amount of power — a reality that former Speaker Boehner quickly came to realize.

The House Freedom Caucus was a frequent thorn in Boehner’s side. Meadows even voted against Boehner to be speaker in January 2015 and later filed a procedural motion to “vacate the chair,� which was the first overt attempt to oust Boehner. Boehner eventually resigned as speaker on Sept. 25, 2015. The Freedom Caucus declined to support House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California to succeed him.

Ryan eventually was elected to the post on Oct. 29, 2015, with the Freedom Caucus’s assent but not full enthusiasm.

The Freedom Caucus was heartened by the election of Donald Trump as president and by the retention of Republican majorities in Congress last November. Less than a month later, Meadows was elected chairman of the Freedom Caucus for a two-year term.

Meadows, 58, is a smooth, affable lawmaker who represents North Carolina’s 11th congressional district. He was born in a U.S. Army field hospital in Verdun, France. His father was stationed there with his mother, a surgical nurse.

Meadows attended high school in Florida and studied business management at the University of South Florida.

He and his wife, Debbie, started a small sandwich shop in the North Carolina resort town of Highlands and then Mark moved into real estate. He worked in Republican Party politics at the precinct level and then ran in 2012 in the

Republican primary for a House seat. He won so lawmakers could stay in Washington and have a lot of CRs [continuing resolution stopwith 38 percent of the vote in a seven-person work on health, spending and tax issues. (Ryan gap spending bills] that keep the government Republican primary and easily won the general did not change the House schedule.) Freedom funded.�

Penner of the Urban Institute also sees a conCaucus members also said they would support election that November.

In his first year in the House, Meadows sup- increasing the debt ceiling only if the measure tentious fall. “The best we can expect is mudported the government shutdown strategy of is linked to spending cuts, entitlement reforms dling through the budget and the debt limit and getting very limited health, tax and infrastrucsome House GOP conservatives in an effort to or ACA repeal.

So what will happen this fall as Congress tries ture legislation. There is not going to be signifikill the Affordable Care Act (ACA). President Barack Obama refused to relent and after a 17- to fund the government, raise the debt ceiling, cant stimulus coming out of Washington in the overhaul the tax code, ad- foreseeable future,� he said. day government shutdown, Penner said a “bipartisan negotiation is baddress Harvey and return to Republicans backed down. ly needed� to forge even a limited fiscal 2018 health care legislation?

Meadows later acknowlNo one knows for sure, but spending agreement. But he’s not certain this edged the GOP’s strategy most analysts expect plenty will occur. “Even a very limited spending agreeto shutter the government ment might be an impossible dream. We may of high-stakes combat. failed to accomplish its “The Freedom Caucus just stumble into a series of short-term CRs,� he central goal. will be very important. They said. “With a new adminBlinder of Princeton said Republicans will are more like a gang than a istration coming in, the coalition. They operate in a likely cobble together legislation to fund the Freedom Caucus is ready no-compromise zone. They government and lift the debt ceiling so they can to go to work on day one will probably be very disrup- turn to their top priority: tax cuts. to help lead the fight to “More than anything, Republicans want to tive this fall,� predicted Colgive Americans a voice in cut taxes. They will move heaven and earth to lender. their government,� MeadPhil Joyce, a fiscal policy cut taxes. What is likely to emerge from the Hill ows said after his election expert at the University of is tax cuts rather than anything that could reaas Freedom Caucus chairMaryland, believes the Free- sonably be called reform,� Blinder said. “At the man. However, the group dom Caucus will play a large end of the rainbow, we’ll probably get tax cuts. has not seen eye to eye role, especially on debt ceil- There is no consensus on what reform looks with Trump and congres- Republican Mark Meadows of North ing legislation. “The Freedom like — or even what it means,� he cautioned, sional leaders on several Carolina was elected chairman of the Caucus seems determined not noting that his “back-of-the-envelope guess� key issues, most notably Freedom Caucus for a two-year term. to have a clean debt ceiling. is that Congress will pass a tax cut package behealth care. They opposed the initial House Republican bill to repeal and They see the debt ceiling as something to use as tween $1 trillion and $2 trillion over 10 years. replace the ACA in March 2017, arguing that leverage to push their agenda not as legislation “This is a large tax cut, but it will fall short of it did not go far enough to dismantle Obama’s that must be passed to protect the ‘full faith and Trump’s boast of the largest tax cut in history.

That might disappoint him.� signature domestic achievement and did not credit’ of the U.S. government,� he said.

Blinder expects the tax cut package to in“As long as bipartisanship is dead, and Demadequately reflect conservative goals. Ryan was forced to withdraw the bill and cobble together ocrats continue to oppose pretty much every- clude both business and individual tax cuts. “It’s an alternative that eventually passed muster thing that Republicans do, and Republicans not politically possible for Republicans to only in the House but stalled in the Senate, where have a narrow majority in the Congress, the pass corporate tax cuts. They have to do both to McConnell was unable to balance the oppos- Freedom Caucus will be very important. They prevent a political revolt,� he said. WD ing demands of hardliners and moderate Re- can make a huge difference,� he added. “Probably the best we can hope for is to limp along John Shaw is a contributing writer publicans.

The Freedom Caucus’s opposition to the first from one deadline to the next. We will probably for The Washington Diplomat.

Republican health care bill infuriated Trump.

Just before the first vote was scheduled, Trump reportedly threatened Meadows at a White House meeting. “I’m going to come after you, but I know I won’t have to because I know you’ll vote yes,� Trump said. But Meadows opposed the first bill. After the bill was withdrawn, Trump hammered Democrats and the Freedom Caucus. “The Freedom Caucus will hurt the entire Republican agenda if they don’t get on the team, & fast. We must fight them, & Dems, in 2018,� he tweeted.

Step inside a legendary revival at The Watergate Hotel, a luxurious Criticism of the Freedom Caucus has also urban resort located along the banks of the Potomac River. come from other House Republicans. Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois wrote a stinging rebuke of the group in an essay in The New York Times on March 31. Kinzinger said the Freedom Caucus was merely a force of opposition O NE B EDRO O M S UIT E that refused reasonable compromises. It was Designed with today’s traveler in mind, offered reductions in essential health benefits that alienated some moderates, agreed to the our one bedroom suites expand to plan but then, according to Kinzinger, upped include multiple guest bedrooms. the ante by demanding to strip protections for people with pre-existing conditions and younger people on their parents’ health plans. “It’s what they do,â€? Kinzinger wrote. “They D I PLOMAT S UIT E move the goal posts, and once that happens, they still refuse to play. We are the Charlie These VIP suites come Brown party, hoping that this time, things will Č´WWHG ZLWK ODYLVK Č´QLVKHV VOHHN be different. But time and again, the Freedom furniture, and lush bedding.

Caucus is Lucy — pulling the ball out from under us, let us take the fall and smiling to themselves for making a splash. It’s a cheap tactic, not a way to govern, and enough is enough.�

P RES IDENT IAL S UIT E Meadows insists he is open to compromise, arguing this is a skill he learned during his real Our impressive Presidential estate career. In a speech at the National Press Suites have sweeping Club on July 24, Meadows said the Freedom waterfront views.

Caucus is determined to repeal the ACA, cut government spending and pass substantial tax cuts. “The American people are tired of gridlock,� he said, adding that Republicans must advance a bold agenda this fall. “We must be very Contact Shirin Kooros at skooros@thewatergatehotel.com aggressive with the tax cut,� he added.

2650 Virginia Avenue Northwest, Washington, DC 20037 In late July, Meadows and other members www.thewatergatehotel.com of the Freedom Caucus called on Ryan to dramatically scale back the House’s August recess THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMAT | SEPTEMBER 2017 | 11