Five years ago, conservative bomb-throwers in the House Freedom Caucus blocked Rep. Kevin McCarthy from rising to the Speakership. Now, the California Republican is working to ensure he doesn’t suffer the same fate if Republicans take back the majority in 2022.
McCarthy, the affable, back-slapping minority leader, has spent the past election cycle bringing Freedom Caucus members — once relegated to the fringes of the party — to the leadership table and into his inner circle.
He helped former Freedom Caucus Chairman Jim Jordan (Ohio) win the top GOP spot on the Oversight and Reform Committee and later the powerful Judiciary Committee. He’s invited leaders from the Freedom Caucus and other factions to the GOP’s annual leadership retreats the past two years in Middleburg, Va., and St. Michaels, Md. Continue reading.