A Close Look at the Chaotic House Republican Majority

of uproar last month The election of Kevin McCarthy The Speaker has indicated that the new House Republican majority could be seriously dysfunctional.and the Spectacle Statements made by Republican lawmakers in their State of the Union address showed the unruly behavior of some Republican ranks and files. new normal.

Many lawmakers who led the chorus of boos and heckles were familiar faces on the far right, including those poised to wield real power in the 118th Congress. A crucial driving force for House Republicans with a four-vote majority may be the push-and-pull between the far right and the rest of the Republican convention.

Here’s a closer look at the difficult House Republican caucuses.

Departures and Newcomers

The caucuses have shifted to the right in another way as the conservatives who opposed the party have left. Nearly three-quarters of Republican House members who didn’t run for re-election or lost in the 2022 primary voted to impeach Trump or form a Jan. 6 commission. Nearly everyone in that group voted to certify the results of the 2020 Electoral College, ignoring Trump and his House Republican majority.

With redistricting, we can’t match every seat one-on-one, but some newcomers who work more closely with the far right are voting to impeach Trump or to impeach Trump. was elected to a seat previously held by a Democrat or Republican who Create a committee for January 6th.

one of five newcomers voted against Mr McCarthy’s speaking bid, Congressman Anna Paulina Luna took over the seat previously held by Democrat Charlie Christ, who ran (and lost) against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Luna has explicitly said the 2020 election was stolen, I participated House Freedom Caucus.

Wyoming Rep. Harriet Hageman Denial of 2020 Election Results, Defeat Rep. Liz Cheney in primary. Mr. Hageman was appointed House Select by Mr. McCarthy. Weaponization Subcommittee The federal government will focus on finding evidence that the government has silenced and punished conservatives.

Andy Ogles of Tennessee Shouted out, “It’s your responsibility!” replaced Rep. Jim Cooper when Mr. Biden called for an end to the fentanyl crisis in his State of the Union address. Cooper retired after reorganizing a diluted Democratic district in the Nashville area.Ogles also opposes McCarthy’s speaker bid, explicitly stating 2020 election stolen.

Overall, more than a third of the 41 Republican newcomers outright denied the outcome of the 2020 election, received support from the House Freedom Fund, or both.

About half a dozen political experts who spoke to The Times said many members of the Republican caucus have learned the value of being hostile and refusing to compromise.

“Conflict attracts attention. You know, the attention economy has always been important to politicians,” said Richard H. Pildes, a professor at the New York University School of Law. “Traditionally, however, you had to go through a series of gatekeepers and intermediaries to get that kind of attention. I couldn’t get that kind of attention in any way.”

Beyond attention, there also seem to be financial incentives to confrontation.

Pildes said the internet has enabled a flood of money from small donors, allowing politicians to raise large sums of money without relying on large donors or party funds. that’s right, Times research Last year, we found it politically beneficial to challenge the results of the 2020 Electoral College.

“We have come to recognize the role of rising extremism and outrage in attracting attention, increasing media coverage and inviting small donations,” Pildes said. “And I think that’s part of the story here.”