Freedom Caucus

Freedom Caucus
ChairAndy Harris
FoundedJanuary 26, 2015; 9 years ago (2015-01-26)
Split fromRepublican Study Committee
Ideology
Political position
National affiliationRepublican Party
Seats in the House Republican Conference
38 / 220
Seats in the House
38 / 435
Website
Campaign website
State Freedom Caucus Network website
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The Freedom Caucus, also known as the House Freedom Caucus, is a congressional caucus consisting of Republican members of the United States House of Representatives. It is generally considered to be the most conservative and furthest-right bloc within the chamber.[1][2][3][4][5] The caucus was formed in January 2015 by a group of conservatives and Tea Party movement members,[6][7] with the aim of pushing the Republican leadership to the right.[2] Its first chairman, Jim Jordan, described the caucus as a "smaller, more cohesive, more agile and more active" group of conservative representatives.[8] Its current chairman, Andy Harris is considered to be a far-right politician due to his radical proposals.[9][10] Members of the Freedom Caucus are typically considered a part of the MAGA movement and loyalists to Donald Trump.

The caucus is positioned right-wing to far-right on the political spectrum.[11][12]The group takes hardline conservative positions and favors social conservatism and small government,[13][14] along with right-wing populist beliefs[15][16] such as opposition to immigration reform.[17] The group sought dozens of times to repeal the Affordable Care Act.[18] Established as a more conservative alternative to the Republican Study Committee, the group initially emphasized fiscal conservatism and concerns about House rules, favoring budget cuts and a decentralization of power within the House of Representatives.[19][20]

After the election of Donald Trump, it became what Politico described as "more populist and nationalist, but less bound by policy principles."[19][21][22] The caucus has included some members who are libertarians.[23][24] The caucus supports House candidates through its PAC, the House Freedom Fund.[25][26] The caucus also has official affiliated caucuses in state legislatures through the State Freedom Caucus Network.[27]

  1. ^ Carl, Jeremy (October 13, 2015). "The Freedom Caucus Is a Rebellion That Could Change the GOP's Future". Archived from the original on December 13, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  2. ^ a b Desilver, Drew (October 20, 2015). "House Freedom Caucus: What is it, and who's in it?". Pew Research Center. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  3. ^ Ethier, Beth (January 26, 2015). "House Conservatives Form "Freedom Caucus" as Right-Wing Rebellion Continues". Slate. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  4. ^ Lauren Fox, Why (almost) everyone hates the House Freedom Caucus, CNN (March 24, 2017): "At first, there were just nine of them, but the group, which is considered the most right flank of the Republican conference, grew."
  5. ^ Mark Barrett, Meadows in line to lead House’s most conservative wing, ‘’Asheville Citizen-Times’’ (December 3, 2016): "the House Freedom Caucus, which occupies the furthest-right position on the ideological spectrum in the U.S. House..."
  6. ^ French, Lauren (January 26, 2015). "9 Republicans launch House Freedom Caucus". Politico. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  7. ^ Ferrechio, Susan (January 26, 2015). "Conservative lawmakers form House Freedom Caucus". Washington Examiner. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  8. ^ Eaton, Sabrina (February 11, 2015). "It's official: Rep. Jim Jordan now chairs the House Freedom Caucus". Cleveland. Archived from the original on February 16, 2019. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  9. ^ Cheney, Kyle. "Freedom Caucus leader endorses radical proposal for North Carolina to hand its electoral votes to Trump". Politico.
  10. ^ "Far-right congressman suggests N.C. Legislature should consider handing electors to Trump on Election Day". NBC News. October 25, 2024. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  11. ^ The Freedom Caucus has been widely described as right-wing:
  12. ^
  13. ^ Reilly, Mollie (October 21, 2015). "House Conservatives Support Paul Ryan For Speaker, But Won't Formally Endorse Him". HuffPost. Retrieved July 14, 2016. the group of hardline conservatives ... the socially conservative House Freedom Caucus
  14. ^ "Paul Ryan vs. House Freedom Caucus: Who will blink first in speaker's race?". Los Angeles Times. October 16, 2015. the group's small-government, socially conservative agenda
  15. ^ Cottle, Michelle (April 7, 2017). "In The Freedom Caucus, Trump Meets His Match". The Atlantic.
  16. ^ Pally, Marcia (June 8, 2017). "A Tale of Two Covenants: Can America be Localist Without Being Exclusionary?". ABC News. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  17. ^ Bade, Rachael (June 27, 2018). "'I thought you were my friend': Immigration meltdown exposes GOP hostilities". Politico. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
  18. ^ "After Boehner ouster, quiet period, Freedom Caucus attacks on IRS, ObamaCare". Fox News. December 10, 2016.
  19. ^ a b Melanie Zanona (March 8, 2022). "Republican leaders face threat of revived Freedom Caucus in GOP-led House". CNN. Past iterations of the group – which was formed as an ultra-conservative alternative to the Republican Study Committee but has since become more of a Trump loyalty club – were more focused on process and transparency concerns, as well as fiscal conservatism. Some of the more veteran members of the group are still emphasizing that as a top priority.
  20. ^ Jay Newton-Small (October 20, 2021). "How Paul Ryan Outfoxed House Conservatives". Time. The House Freedom Caucus has had a lot of demands of late: conditions under which they'd support anyone to be Speaker, changes they'd like to see made in the House to decentralize power, ... The as-of-yet unformed bill is almost guaranteed to have levels of spending the fiscally conservative Freedom Caucus will find highly objectionable – they have never supported any bipartisan deal that has come out of the Senate.
  21. ^ "Inside the House Freedom Caucus' identity crisis". Politico. April 29, 2022.
  22. ^ Swan, Jonathan (July 28, 2021). "Trump allies blame conservative leader for failed Texas endorsement". Axios. the Freedom Caucus – a group of ultra-conservative House Republicans who are fervently pro-Trump.
  23. ^ Friedman, Dan (July 13, 2016). "For These House Republicans, the NRA's Seal of Approval Isn't Enough". The Trace. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  24. ^ Loiaconi, Stephen (March 24, 2017). "For Freedom Caucus, defying Trump could have consequences". WJLA-TV. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2017. The House Freedom Caucus, a cadre of conservatives, libertarians and others who have shown no hesitation to buck the party leadership, has been heavily critical of the AHCA
  25. ^ Boguhn, Ally (June 21, 2016). "The House Freedom Fund Bankrolls Some of Congress' Most Anti-Choice Candidates". Rewire News. Archived from the original on December 11, 2018.
  26. ^ Wong, Scott (May 22, 2018). "Freedom Caucus bruised but unbowed in GOP primary fights". The Hill. Archived from the original on December 11, 2018.
  27. ^ Cite error: The named reference state was invoked but never defined (see the help page).