Top GOP rebels angle for powerful committee post backed by House leadership

Rep. Chip RoyR-Texas, is running to be the next chairman of the House Rules Committee, an influential panel that acts as the final gatekeeper for most bills before they get a vote in the full House.

“I’ll defer to the speaker on that,” Roy said when asked about the presidency on Steve Bannon’s “War Room” podcast this week. “Obviously, I put my name in there.”

It would be a surprising rise for a lawmaker who has been a vocal critic of House leadership on certain issues, particularly government spending.

More recently, however, the GOP rebel — and current policy chair of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus — has earned a reputation as a conduit between GOP leaders and lawmakers routinely known to buck his directives.

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Rep. Chip Roy could be the chairman of the House Rules Committee ((Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images))

Roy won a seat on the House Rules Committee as part of a deal with former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in January 2023 to expand conservative representation, part of a broader commitment for McCarthy to win his short-lived Speaker of the House. .

The Texas Republican was not one of the eight Republicans who then voted to expel McCarthy despite his early criticism, and was even publicly skeptical of his colleagues’ decision to do so.

The House Rules Committee is the final stop for bills before a full House vote. The committee and its chairman are responsible for dictating the terms of a bill’s debate and which amendments, if any, will also be voted on.

After a bill passes the House Rules Committee, it is subject to a “rules vote” by the entire House to allow debate on the legislation before a vote on final approval.

In his two years on the committee, Roy has voted against several House rules, which could jeopardize his hopes for the role.

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That decision rests with House Speaker Mike Johnson (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

However, he has garnered support from several colleagues: Rep. Ralph Norman, RS.C., told Fox News Digital on Thursday: “That would be great. I support it 100%.

Rep. John Carter, R-Texas, wrote in X that Roy “will build the conservative coalition in the House necessary to support President Trump’s priorities as chairman of the Rules Committee.”

But unlike other committees, whose chairs are selected by a broader group of lawmakers, only the House speaker has the floor for the House Rules panel.

“I think it’s important to have a rules president, whoever it is, that supports the leadership,” one GOP lawmaker granted anonymity to speak freely about Roy’s bid.

“The speaker is going to get his agenda passed one way or another, and so whoever he appoints for that, that’s going to be the deal. Because he can remove them and then replace them.”

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The current chairman of the House Rules Committee, Michael Burgess, will retire at the end of this year (Getty Images)

Another GOP lawmaker said, “He’s one of the brightest and knows the procedure, but the majority won’t trust him in this role.”

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Current House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, RN.C., is also rumored to be in the running for the role.

The current chairman of the House Rules Committee, Michael Burgess, R-Texas, is retiring at the end of this year.