Simmering tensions among House Republicans flared anew over the weekend, following a New York Times report that detailed how Kevin McCarthy’s (R., Calif.) bitterly contested speakership battle has undermined his confidence in colleagues.
While it took McCarthy a historic 15 ballots to secure the position through January’s chaos and infighting, the speaker reportedly remains particularly frustrated by certain Republicans — including Jodey Arrington (R., Texas) and Steve Scalise (R., La.), the budget committee chairman and House majority leader, respectively.
“Mr. McCarthy has told colleagues he has no confidence in Mr. Arrington, the man responsible for delivering a budget framework laying out the spending cuts that Republicans have said they will demand in exchange for any move to increase the debt limit,” Jonathan Swan and Annie Karni wrote in the Times. McCarthy still regards Arrington, who sought to nominate Scalise during the speakership balloting, “as incompetent, according to more than half a dozen people familiar with this his thinking,” the Times revealed.
The leaks, in turn, appear only to have further chilled relations between McCarthy and some members of the conference.
“The members I’ve spoken with are just stunned by his rebuking of his budget chair, and certainly of our leadership,” an unnamed House Republican told Axios on Saturday. The representative expressed doubts McCarthy will serve the full extent of his speakership term.
“I can’t imagine.”
Representative Ralph Norman (R., S.C.) put the onus on McCarthy to patch up relations with colleagues and carry out their agreements. “The agreements made by Speaker McCarthy, among other things, is to begin the ten year balanced budget NOW and with his initiatives & directives, it’s HIS responsibility to get the 218 votes to ensure our nation’s financial security JUST AS HE DID IN SECURING THE 218 votes for speaker,” Norman told Axios.
Another unnamed Republican agreed.
“He made a bunch of promises during the speaker race that were always untenable, but he made them anyway,” a senior House Republican told Politico. “At a certain point, a lot of that stuff is going to collide, and he’s getting nervous and looking for others to blame.”
Although both Scalise and Arrington refused to comment on the matter, the latter provided Axios with an official statement about the pressing work the Budget Committee is currently engaged in and the need to avoid distractions.
“Our nation is staring down the barrel of a debt crisis and my budget committee colleagues and I are focused on one thing: passing a budget that will stop this reckless spending and restore fiscal sanity in Washington before it’s too late.”
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