WASHINGTON 鈥� Texans are slated to chair some of the most influential committees in this congressional session. But without a speaker of the House, they can鈥檛 take their gavels. And it鈥檚 getting on their nerves.
鈥淓verything flows from the speaker being elected. We can鈥檛 even get sworn in. I can鈥檛 start my committee. We鈥檙e held hostage until we get this thing resolved,鈥� said Rep. , R-Austin, who is slated to lead the House Foreign Affairs Committee and lead the party鈥檚 investigations into the Biden administration鈥檚 botched withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The House recessed Wednesday after yet another series of votes that failed to deliver a House speaker. Roughly 20 of the most hard-line Republican members 鈥� including Texas鈥� Reps. , R-Austin, and , R-Victoria, and Rep.-elect Keith Self, R-McKinney 鈥� held firm in their opposition to a bid by Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California for the speakership, meaning no candidate was able to secure the 218 votes needed to secure the gavel.
Normally, committee assignments would be determined by early December, allowing members to hire staff and set up the structures needed to immediately start legislating. Republican party leadership plays a central role in selecting who will lead each committee.
But that process was delayed late last year after it became clear that this year鈥檚 speaker鈥檚 election would be competitive. The House Republican conference was unable to get enough of their members behind McCarthy in a November party meeting to secure his majority in the full chamber, leaving too much uncertainty for the party to start doling out chairmanships.
That鈥檚 put several Texans in limbo. Rep. , R-Houston, is competing against two other Republicans, Reps. Mark Green, R-Tennessee, and Clay Higgins, R-Louisiana, to lead the Homeland Security Committee, which will be key to the party鈥檚 oversight agenda of the Biden administration鈥檚 immigration policy. Rep. , R-Lubbock, is also gunning for the top spot on the House Budget Committee.
鈥淩ules changes, who gets more power, who gets on what committee 鈥� I can鈥檛 think of one American who gives a damn about any of that,鈥� Crenshaw told reporters. 鈥淭hey care about the mission. And the conservative agenda is one that will accomplish the mission for the American people the best. But we can鈥檛 start that agenda until we start governing.鈥�
Other Texans slated to lead committees include Rep. , who is set to chair the House Appropriations Committee, and Rep. , who is running uncontested to lead the Small Business Committee.
It isn鈥檛 only impacting members. Without chairs, the support mechanisms for committees can鈥檛 be created or funded. Members can鈥檛 access the secure areas used to process sensitive information. Crenshaw planned to double the size of the Homeland Security committee but is unable to hire personnel. It鈥檚 taking a toll on the morale of staffers, who are the ones who comb through arcane numbers and legal jargon to put ideas into bill text.
鈥淵ou have to have your committees in order. That鈥檚 how you do the work of Congress, the work of the people,鈥� Williams said.
The right-wing members say they oppose McCarthy as part of their broader protest against the way the House is run, demanding drastic alterations to House procedure. The rules of the chamber, they say, puts far too much power in the hands of leadership and committee heads at the expense of rank-and-file members. They demand sweeping rules changes and seats for some of their allies in prime committees in order to give more power to a wider range of members within the party.
McCarthy has already acquiesced on many of the rules changes, but he and his allies argue the opposition has devolved into a personal beef and those members trying to secure plum committee assignments for themselves.
鈥淵ou tell me what you need. I鈥檒l beg McCarthy for it. Like what is it? And they won鈥檛 tell me,鈥� Crenshaw said in an interview with the Tribune. 鈥淵ou guys got a lot of stuff. A lot of concessions that a lot of us are actually really uncomfortable with.鈥�
McCarthy himself asked dissenters what they wanted during a Republican conference meeting Tuesday, McCaul said, but they were not able to give specifics.
Roy and Cloud retort that there is nothing personal about their position and that the concessions from leadership were not sincere. Cloud said in a statement Tuesday the rules proposals by McCarthy鈥檚 camp 鈥渓acked enforcement mechanisms necessary to ensure their implementation, casting doubt on the sincerity of reforms.鈥�
Roy pushed back on the idea that dissenters were trying to force themselves onto powerful committees out of self interest. In an interview with Dana Loesch, Roy said he didn鈥檛 want to be on the House Rules Committee on account of the added time commitment that would detract from his time as a parent. But he put his name down to join the committee 鈥渂ecause I鈥檓 trying to save the damn country.鈥�
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want a plum committee assignment,鈥� Roy said. 鈥淚 want freedom.鈥�
Roy added that dissenters became even firmer in their positions after the Tuesday conference meeting due to McCarthy鈥檚 handling of their demands. Roy was angered by a threat by McCarthy鈥檚 allies to pull members off of committees if they didn鈥檛 vote for him.
McCarthy and the dissenters have continued to meet on the sidelines of the lengthy roll call votes, which have so far remained essentially stagnant. Roy told reporters Wednesday that the discussions were progressing, and members broke voting Wednesday afternoon to huddle yet again.
After two days and several hours of monotonous roll call votes, members were visibly frustrated and fatigued in the chamber. Members jeered and cackled through calls for order, and several groaned as those not in their camp repeated their talking points. Crenshaw warned resentment would only grow as time went on.
But the dissenters made it clear they were obdurate and didn鈥檛 care about personal popularity in face of their principles.
鈥淢y constituents sent me here to vote for my district and be strong,鈥� Self said.
