Punchbowl News: “To be clear, the HFC is home to some of the Trumpiest members in Washington. Hardline conservatives were only willing to back Mike Johnson for speaker — who they still have reservations about — out of deference to Trump. It took a phone call from the incoming president to flip the remaining two Freedom Caucus holdouts, Reps. Ralph Norman (R-SC) and Keith Self (R-TX), into Johnson’s column. Trump should be able to count on the conservative crew to fall in line on nearly all issues.”
“Yet the HFC, which built its brand on being a thorn in the side of House GOP leaders, has also been willing to defy Trump at times. For instance, 38 Republicans, many of them Freedom Caucus members, voted against a Trump-endorsed CR in December that would have also lifted the debt limit because it lacked spending cuts.”
“So it’s clear these hardliners are sometimes comfortable banding together and bucking Trump — at least when they have strength in numbers.”
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