For months, the House Freedom Caucus has been shaking up Congress. Monday night, the group of conservatives opted to keep that momentum going by re-electing Rep. Jim Jordan as chairman.
Widely respected among the caucus, the Ohio Republican ran unopposed and was elected unanimously.
Another founding member of the caucus, Rep. Justin Amash, R-Mich., said members believe that Jordan “has done a fantastic job getting our group off the ground.” They think the chairman “deserves the chance to lead for another year,” Amash told The Daily Signal.
>>> What Jordan Wants From a Ryan Speakership
Under Jordan’s leadership, the upstart organization of Republican lawmakers has achieved significant victories in the House since it formed in January. The caucus of roughly 40 members sparked a speaker scramble, first helping to topple Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, then blocking his groomed replacement, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
During this leadership vacuum in October, while serving as chairman of the influential House Ways and Means Committee, Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said he wouldn’t run without the support of all three major party caucuses.
Jordan and a supermajority of the Freedom Caucus announced they would support Ryan, ensuring he had the 218 Republican votes needed to lock down the position of speaker, but only after securing key concessions on reform of House procedure and culture.
Comprising habitual agitators for rule changes, the caucus regularly calls for a decentralized approach to governing, one that empowers individual members and committees during the legislative process.
Since his election last month as speaker, and with the prodding of the Freedom Caucus, Ryan has taken steps to change the way the House does business by opening up the legislative process and following what the lawmakers call regular order.
Amash applauded Ryan for “acting in good faith” and honoring his promises. “Ryan deserves an opportunity to show us that he will operate differently than John Boehner,” he said.
Jordan served as the glue keeping the caucus together, allowing lawmakers to push for reforms, Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan., said
Huelskamp praised Jordan for proving that the group “can stick together” and credited his leadership in “changing the speaker and changing the rules by which we pick committee assignments.”
“It’s a tough job,” Huelskamp said. “[Jordan] has done a superb job, but he’s done it in a way that’s pretty low-key.”
The election for Freedom Caucus chairman doesn’t signal internal disagreement or restructuring. Caucus rules require an annual election, and only its board members are allowed to run for chairman.
Also Monday night, two of the nine board members, Ron DeSantis, R-Calif., and Raul Labrador, R-Idaho, stepped down. The caucus elected Reps. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., and Steve Pearce, R-S.C., to replace them.
Sources familiar with the workings of the caucus said the board serves in an advisory capacity, counseling the chairman and helping to set the group’s agenda.
Labrador will continue as an ex officio board member, while DeSantis stepped down to focus more time on his race for the Senate.
With Jordan back at the helm, the conservative group is looking to increase its influence over Congress.
A founding member, Mark Meadows, R-S.C., last week announced an early draft of a legislative vision for Congress in 2016, dubbed “Contract with America II.” A Meadows aide said the manifesto is still in the works but soon will be up for consideration among caucus members.
First reported by Bloomberg News, the agenda outlines several priorities such as repealing Obamacare, reforming Medicare and Social Security, and ending the estate tax.
If the Freedom Caucus signs off, Jordan likely will push for implementation of the agenda during the first 100 days of 2016.
A spokeswoman for Ryan, AshLee Strong, declined to comment specifically on the caucus election Monday but said the speaker remains “eager to work with all members of the Republican conference.”
