Texas Republican Rep Chip Roy, who sits on the House Rules Committee, is unhappy with the debt ceiling deal Speaker McCarthy cut with President Biden.
And he says McCarthy is reneging on a handshake deal he made in order to become Speaker of the House.
Mr. Roy says McCarthy made a handshake deal that all nine Republicans on the powerful committee must agree to move any legislation forward, otherwise bills could not be considered by the full House for majority approval.
That would essentially doom the debt ceiling bill since Roy – who sits on the panel – and Ralph Norman, another MAGA on the committee, are trying to stop the bill from advancing.
Several Republicans and McCarthy cronies deny there was ever a deal for all nine Republican committee members to sign off on legislation to move forward for a vote.
The dispute hands the baton to Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, who could effectively complicate the measure in committee, since McCarthy apparently did agree to bring forward only legislation with the backing of seven Republicans in the rules committee.
In January, Massie said this: “I would be reluctant to try to use the rules committee to achieve a legislative outcome, particularly if it doesn’t represent a large majority of our caucus. So I don’t ever intend to use my position on there to like, hold somebody hostage – or hold legislation hostage.”