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The Freedom
Caucus |
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The Freedom Caucus, also
known as the House Freedom Caucus, is a
congressional caucus consisting of
Republican members of the United States
House of Representatives. It is generally
considered to be the most conservative and
farthest-right bloc within the House
Republican Conference. The caucus was formed
in January 2015 by a group of conservatives
and Tea Party movement members, with the aim
of pushing the Republican leadership to the
right. Its first chairman, Jim Jordan,
described the caucus as a "smaller, more
cohesive, more agile and more active" group
of conservative representatives. The caucus
is positioned right-wing to far-right on the
political spectrum, with some members
holding right-wing populist beliefs, such as
opposition to immigration reform. The group
takes hardline conservative positions and
favors social conservativism and small
government. The group sought dozens of times
to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Established as an ultra-conservative
alternative to the Republican Study
Committee, the group initially emphasized
fiscal conservatism and concerns about House
rules, favoring budget cuts and a
decentralization of power within the House
of Representatives. Later, the Freedom
Caucus shifted its emphasis to loyalty to
Donald Trump and became what Politico
described as "more populist and nationalist,
but less bound by policy principles". The
caucus includes some members who are
libertarians. The caucus supports House
candidates through its PAC, the House
Freedom Fund. |
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State Freedom
Caucus Network |
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In December 2021, the
Freedom Caucus officially expanded to the
state level, establishing the 'State Freedom
Caucus Network' in state legislatures to
provide legislators with additional
resources. The group has state-level
caucuses in ten states: Arizona,
Idaho, Georgia, South Carolina, Mississippi,
South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Pennsylvania
and Illinois. Aside from the caucuses
affiliated with the State Freedom Caucus
Network, several state-level caucuses
describing themselves as the 'Freedom
Caucus' exist in other state legislatures,
including in Texas, New Hampshire, North
Carolina, Georgia, Washington and Michigan. |
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Source:
Wikipedia, Mar. 18,
2023 |
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ARIZONA MEMBERS |
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As of January 2023
Eli Crane (AZ-2),
Andy Biggs (AZ-5),
Debbie Lesko (AZ-8),
Paul Gosar (AZ-9) were Arizona members
of the House Freedom Caucus. Also, as of
January 2023 Arizona State House of
Representatives members included Rep.
Jake Hoffman, Rep.
Joseph Chaplik, Rep.
John Fillmore, Rep.
Jacqueline Parker, Rep.
Cory McGarr, Rep.
Barbara Parker, Rep.
Rachel Jones, Rep.
Alex Kolodin, Rep.
Beverly Pingerelli, Rep.
Austin Smith, Rep.
Laurin Hendrix, Sen.
Justine Wadsack and Sen.
Anthony Kern. Total members may not be
listed as some members are anonymous. |
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Source: State
Freedom Caucus website. Feb. 2, 2023 |
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Arizona Freedom
Caucus Plans To Sue
Hobbs Over
Executive Order
Protecting LGBTQ
Employees |
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"The Arizona Freedom
Caucus, an offshoot
of the
ultra-conservative
Freedom Caucus
in the U.S. House of
Representatives,
said Monday that it
plans to sue Gov.
Katie Hobbs for
executive orders she
issued in her first
week on the job.
Arizona Freedom
Caucus Chairman and
Queen Creek state
Sen.
Jake Hoffman
accused Hobbs of
attempting to
legislate via
“executive fiat.”
Hobbs had issued
four executive
orders at the time.
“If Katie Hobbs
wants to legislate,
she needs to get her
butt out of the
Governor’s Office
and run for the
legislature and come
back and join us and
do that job,”
Hoffman told
reporters on the
grassy lawn in front
of the state Senate.
A woman in the crowd
shouted back that
Hobbs was
“illegitimate” in
response to
Hoffman’s statement.
Hoffman and the
Arizona Freedom
Caucus also vowed to
“stand in (Hobbs’)
way in every step of
the process” if she
continues to use
executive orders.
“You can bet your
ass that will
happen,” Hoffman
said. The executive
order that so
enraged the Arizona
Freedom Caucus is
Hobbs’ first, part
of her “First 100
Days Initiative,”
which outlines the
first 100 actions
she plans to take in
her first 100 days.
Under the new order,
the Arizona
Department of
Administration will
reinforce
nondiscrimination
laws for state
agencies, guarantee
equal employment
opportunities and
establish updated
procedures by April
1. New contracts and
subcontracts with
the state also have
to include
provisions to
prevent
discrimination. The
provisions are aimed
at ensuring there is
no discrimination
against LGBTQ
workers." |
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Jan. 10, 2023 |
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What Is The House
Freedom Caucus? |
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"They have been
likened by fellow
Republicans to
“lemmings with
suicide vests”,
“legislative
terrorists” and the
Taliban. When they
formed a voting bloc
in 2015 they
considered naming
themselves the
“Reasonable Nut Job
Caucus”. Members of
the House Freedom
Caucus, a troupe
of about 50
far-right
Republicans in
America’s House of
Representatives (out
of 222 Republicans
in the chamber), are
unabashed agents of
chaos. In this
Congress they became
kingmakers. Nineteen
of the 20 lawmakers
who forced 15 rounds
of voting for the
position of speaker
belong to the group.
Only after Kevin
McCarthy granted
them significant
concessions did he
win the job on
January 7th. What is
the Freedom
Caucus—and what
power do its members
now wield? The
caucus was formed by
Republican members
who considered the
leadership of the
House (then, as now,
in Republican hands)
too amenable to
compromise with
House Democrats and
the Obama
administration.
Ironically the group
was borne of
frustration with the
Republican Study
Committee (rsc), a
once similarly
minded caucus
established during
the Nixon
administration,
which had lost its
insurgent character.
Unlike the rsc, the
Freedom Caucus’s
membership was
secret and
invitation-only. Its
bylaws stressed
unity: on certain
measures, if
four-fifths of
members agreed to
vote one way, all
had to follow suit.
Its defiance of the
House leadership
quickly earned
punishment. Some of
its members were
stripped of
committee
assignments and
denied party funds
for re-election. Yet
its ranks have
swelled in recent
years." |
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Jan. 9, 2023 |
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Freedom Caucus Chair
Andy Biggs Helped
Plan January 6
Event, Lead
Organizer Says |
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"The head of the
House Freedom
Caucus,
Republican Rep.
Andy Biggs of
Arizona, helped plan
the January 6 event
that culminated in a
storming of the
Capitol, according
to Ali Alexander, a
lead organizer of
the gathering.
Alexander, a
pro-Trump
personality, was an
early founder of the
“Stop the Steal”
movement and helped
bring together
various right-wing
factions around a
mass event on
January 6, aimed to
coincide with
objections to the
counting of
Electoral College
votes. Alexander
made his claim in
three separate
livestreams in late
December, adding
that Reps.
Paul Gosar of
Arizona and Mo
Brooks of Alabama
were also involved.
“We’re the four guys
who came up with a
January 6 event,”
Alexander said. On
December 8, the
Arizona Republican
Party boosted
Alexander, asking
supporters if they
were willing to give
their lives in the
fight over the
results of the
presidential
election. His claim
is also buttressed
by a fourth video
from a December 19
rally at the Arizona
State Capitol, at
which Alexander
played a video that
Biggs had supplied.
In the video, Biggs
mentions Brooks as
his ally in the
fight. Gosar spoke
in person at the
event." |
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Jan. 11, 2021 |
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House Freedom
Caucus Members
Move From The Fringe
To Power |
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"House Freedom
Caucus members
were pariahs. But as
the lines between
the Republican
fringe and the
Republican
mainstream blur, now
they're ascendant." |
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Feb. 13, 2020 |
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