The far-right flank of the Republican Party is keeping a close eye on House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the front-runner in the upcoming House Speaker election, warning him that his upcoming vote to keep the government funded could be his undoing.
Appearing on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal Wednesday, Rep. John Fleming (R-La.), a member of the House Freedom Caucus, called for a complete overhaul in party leadership—a sign that Rep. McCarthy has a lot of work to do to win support from a Tea Party that has been a constant thorn in the side of incumbent John Boehner (R-Ohio)
“I don’t believe that we should just simply move the chairs on the deck,” Rep. Fleming said. “I don’t think we should just simply elevate everybody one notch and say we’re going to keep the status quo,” he added, referencing to both McCarthy’s ambitions, and current Majority Whip Steve Scalise’s (R-La.) bid to move up to Majority Leader.
Both Reps. McCarthy and Scalise will be watched closely this week as they navigate votes in the House that could precipitate a government shutdown over funding for Planned Parenthood. Members are expected to consider both a clean short-term funding bill passed by the Senate Wednesday, and one with a rider that would strip funding from the women’s health organization.
“Absolutely,” Rep. Fleming said when asked if he would condition support for leadership candidates on how they vote on the funding measures. “I want to know how they’re going to vote because I think they’re free to vote their own conscience.”
He added that their decision “says a lot about the future of their leadership.”
Rep. McCarthy is facing only one challenger so far for the Speakership, Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.). In the race for Majority Leader, Rep. Steve Scalise is joined by Rep. Tom Price—the chairman of the House Budget Committee.
Like other members of the House Freedom Caucus, Rep. Fleming refused to endorse anyone specifically for a leadership position, and stressed that the process shouldn’t be rushed.
“We are going to begin meeting with the candidates and we want to make sure that this is a elongated process. We have plenty of time,” he said.
One major complication for the Tea Party in their bid to influence leadership is, ironically, Benghazi.
Freedom Caucus members have been trying to draft Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) to run for Speaker, however the Conservative newcomer to Congress has resisted, telling his colleagues that he wants to remain focused on his current role as Chairman of the House’s Select Committee on Benghazi, which has been investigating former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s handling of the 2012 terror attack on the American consulate in Libya.
“If Trey Gowdy were to run for Speaker, I think he’d win,” Freedom Caucus member Justin Amash (R-Mich.) told The Hill Tuesday.
UPDATE: Speaker John Boehner announced this morning that leadership elections will be moved up to next week, October 8, according to The Hill.
