What three hard-line conservatives plan to do with their seats on the Rules Committee

Published

3 years ago

January 30, 2023

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The addition of Republican Reps. Chip Roy (Texas), Ralph Norman (S.C.), and Thomas Massie (Ky.) to the House Rules Committee — one of the concessions from Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) that helped him secure the gavel — means that the frequent antagonists of leadership have the opportunity to create significant barriers to getting legislation to the House floor.

But the three say that if they use their leverage, it will be to enforce the kind of open-process demands that fueled resistance to McCarthy in the drawn-out Speakership battle.

“We just need to make sure that we’re applying the rules, the germaneness rules, the, you know, single-subject rules, and then figure out how that’s all gonna get down to the floor under the right rules. Is it going to be a structured rule, an open rule?” Roy said.

Lawmakers got their first taste of a more open rules process last week with a modified open rule on a bill to limit the president’s ability to release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Any member could submit an amendment for the first time in seven years. More than 140 amendments were submitted, and 56 of them got votes in fast-moving marathon floor sessions over two days.

“We’re actually being the people’s house,” Roy said.

The House Rules Committee gets final say over legislation before it heads to a final vote, crafting the process that governs consideration of each bill and how much input members can have on the floor. It was central to the group 20 hard-line conservatives who pushed the Speakership election into a historic four-day saga over demands for rules change demands and policy priorities.

One of the concessions from McCarthy, according to a person familiar with the deal, was to name three House Freedom Caucus or “Freedom Caucus-adjacent” members to the Rules Committee. Massie is not a member of the confrontational conservative group like Roy and Norman, but frequently votes with them.

Roy said repeatedly during the Speakership fight that he was not necessarily pining to be on the Rules Committee, which will require more time in Washington and away from his family, but was willing to do so if it meant ensuring the panel did not waive process agreements — like single-subject bills and a rule requiring 72 hours from release of final bill text to a floor vote — as had become commonplace.

Lawmakers frequently bemoaned spending bills thousands of pages long being released just hours before a final vote, ushered through the Rules Committee with waived rules and not open to amend on the floor.

With nine Republican members to four Democratic members set to be on the panel, the three together could derail bills if they do not conform to their standards — “veto power,” as Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) put it in an MSNBC interview last week.

Rep. Jim McGovern (Mass.), the top Democrat on the panel, summed up the tricky dynamic in a one-word tweet: “Yikes.”

Republicans on the Rules Committee held their first meeting on Thursday, during which Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) laid out the committee’s processes for the new members.

“I don’t see it as us against them,” Norman said. “Guy Reschenthaler” — a Pennsylvania Republican also on the committee — “is a straight thinking, good guy. Tom Cole, I think he’s a veteran who’s done this a lot longer than we have.”

The threat of the three defecting could itself prevent Republican leadership from attempting what Massie called “creative” rules.

“There’s a few rules in the past that were a little too creative that I already expressed displeasure with before joining the committee,” Massie said. “If there was any doubt, they know where I stand on some of the shenanigans that have happened over the last 10 years.”

He mentioned a 2018 instance where a rule for the must-pass farm bill included language preventing a vote for the rest of a year on any war powers resolution limiting U.S. involvement in Yemen.

But the libertarian-conservative Massie, who has often been a lone “no” vote on floor measures, says that he does not plan to use his position on the Rules Committee to try to sway policy or final outcomes.

“I’m ready and fully prepared to vote for rules on bills that I’ll be a ‘hell no’ on the bill when it gets to the floor,” Massie said.

Norman, though, said that he could foresee using his influence not only to enforce structural rules but also to get more favorable policies. One of Norman’s major sticking points during the Speakership battle was wanting the House to pass a plan to balance the budget in seven to 10 years.

There could be times, though, when the three hard-liners are asked to be flexible on House rules.

Congress this year must deal with a looming debt limit deadline in early June, as well as measures to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration, the farm bill and annual government spending. And it has a history of waiting until the last minute to strike a deal and take action.

“My default position is going to be a better be damn good thing like, you know, a 9/11 attack or something, If you’re going to be waiving the 72 hours. We cannot start that game,” Roy said.

But, Roy added, he will “never say never.” 11 US destinations land on Forbes list of top travel spots in 2023 Why $4 per gallon gas this spring isn’t out of the question

“We will not accept, as an example with the omnibus 4,155 pages long, getting it the night before,” Norman said.

“There’s something that’s pretty simple that’s got some urgency to it, then present it, and then let us make the judgment call,” Norman continued. “But in Washington, D.C., a lot of things proposed as urgent that are not urgent. It’s kind of like, beauty’s in the eyes of the beholder.”

Mychael Schnell contributed.

World

Mushroom murderer Erin Patterson left me ‘half alive’, sole survivor says

Published

3 hours ago

August 25, 2025

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Mushroom murderer Erin Patterson left me 'half alive', sole survivor says

The sole surviving guest of a lunch where three others died after being served food laced with toxic mushrooms has told an Australian court that the actions of murderer Erin Patterson have left him feeling “half alive”.

Ian Wilkinson, who received a liver transplant and spent months in hospital after the poisoning in July 2023, described how he had been left traumatised as he delivered his victim impact statement at Patterson’s pre-sentencing hearing in Melbourne.

Patterson, 50, was found guilty last month of luring her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, to lunch at her home in Leongatha and poisoning them with individual portions of Beef Wellington that contained toxic death cap mushrooms.

A jury also found her guilty of the attempted murder of Mr Wilkinson, Heather’s husband.

Speaking at the start of the two-day hearing, Mr Wilkinson, a Baptist pastor, said the death of his wife had left him bereft.

“It’s a truly horrible thought to live with that somebody could decide to take her life. I only feel half alive without her,” he said, breaking down in tears.

“It’s one of the distressing shortcomings of our society that so much attention is showered on those who do evil and so little on those who do good.”

‘I bear her no ill will’

He described Gail and Don Patterson, the parents of Erin Patterson’s estranged husband Simon Patterson, as the closest people to him after his wife and family.

“My life is greatly impoverished without them,” Mr Wilkinson said.

“I’m distressed that Erin has acted with callous and calculated disregard for my life and the lives of those I love. What foolishness possesses a person to think that murder could be the solution to their problems, especially the murder of people who have only good intentions towards her?”

He called on Patterson, who said the poisonings were accidental and continues to maintain her innocence, to confess to her crimes.

“I encourage Erin to receive my offer of forgiveness for those harms done to me with full confession and repentance. I bear her no ill will,” he said.

“I am no longer Erin Patterson’s victim and she has become the victim of my kindness.”

The court received a total of 28 victim impact statements, of which seven were read publicly.

‘An irreparably broken home’

Patterson’s estranged husband Simon Patterson – who was invited to the lunch but declined – spoke of the devastating impact on the couple’s two children.

“The grim reality is they live in an irreparably broken home with only a solo parent, when almost everyone else knows their mother murdered their grandparents,” he said in a statement that was read out on his behalf.

Patterson attended the court in person on Monday rather than watch via a video link from prison which she did during a hearing earlier this month.

The hearing is scheduled to continue on Tuesday.

Patterson faces a potential life sentence for each of the murders and 25 years for attempted murder.

She has 28 days from the day of her sentencing to appeal, but has not yet indicated whether she will do so.

US

National Guard will begin carrying firearms in Washington DC, official says

Published

3 hours ago

August 25, 2025

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National Guard will begin carrying firearms in Washington DC, official says

National Guard troops deployed to Washington DC in an effort to mitigate crime will begin carrying firearms, an official has said.

Defence secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the authorisation of roughly 2,000 National Guard troops to begin carrying weapons.

The majority of the guard members will carry M17 pistols, their service-issued weapons, while a small number will be armed with M4 rifles, reports Sky’s US partner organisation, NBC News.

The troops are authorised to use their weapons for self-protection.

A White House official told NBC News that despite being armed, as of Saturday night, the National Guard troops in DC are not making arrests, and will continue to work on protecting federal assets.

The troops were largely deployed from outside the state and were framed by President Trump as a concerted effort to tackle crime and homelessness in the nation’s capital.

Such deployments are not common, and are typically used in response natural disasters or civil unrest.

Democrats have bashed the deployment as partisan in nature, accusing Mr Trump of trying to exert his presidential authority through scare tactics and said his primary targets have been cities with black leadership.

Pentagon plans to deploy US army to Chicago

Yesterday it was reported that the Pentagon was drafting plans to deploy the US army in Chicago, the largest city in the state.

The governor of Illinois then accused Mr Trump of “attempting to manufacture a crisis” and “abusing his power to distract from the pain he is causing working families”.

Officials familiar with the proposals told the Washington Post that several options were being weighed up by the US defence department, including mobilising thousands of National Guard troops in Chicago as early as September.

Mr Trump had told reporters on Friday that “Chicago is a mess”, before attacking the city’s mayor, Brandon Johnson, and hinting “we’ll straighten that one out probably next”.

US

Flesh-eating screwworm parasite detected in person in US for first time

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3 hours ago

August 25, 2025

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Flesh-eating screwworm parasite detected in person in US for first time

A case of the flesh-eating screwworm parasite has been detected in a person in the United States for the first time.

The parasitic flies eat cattle and other warm-blooded animals alive, with an outbreak beginning in Central America and southern Mexico late last year.

It is ultimately fatal if left untreated.

The case in the US was identified in a person from Maryland who had travelled from Guatemala.

Beth Thompson, South Dakota’s state veterinarian, told Reuters on Sunday that she was notified of the case within the
last week.

A Maryland state government official also confirmed the case.

The person was treated and prevention measures were implemented, Reuters reports.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Maryland Department of Health did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

What is screwworm?

The female screwworm fly lays eggs in the wounds of warm-blooded animals and once hatched, hundreds of screwworm larvae use their sharp mouths to burrow through living flesh.

It can be devastating in cattle and wildlife, and has also been known to infect humans.

Treatment is onerous, and involves removing hundreds of larvae and thoroughly disinfecting wounds. They are largely survivable if treated early enough.

The confirmed case is likely to rattle the beef and cattle futures market, which has seen record-high prices because of tight supplies.

The US typically imports more than a million cattle from Mexico each year to process into beef. The screwworm outbreak could cost Texas – the biggest cattle-producing state – $1.8bn (£1.3bn) in livestock deaths, labour costs and medication
expenses.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has set traps and sent mounted officers along the border, but it has faced criticism from some cattle producers and market analysts for not acting faster to pursue increased fly production via a sterile fly facility.

What is a sterile fly facility?

The case also comes just one week after the US agriculture secretary, Brooke Rollins, travelled to Texas to announce plans to build a sterile fly facility there in a bid to combat the pest. Ms Rollins had pledged repeatedly to keep screwworm out of the country.

A sterile fly facility produces a large number of male flies and sterilises them – these males are then released to mate with wild female insects, which collapses the wild population over time. This method eradicated screwworm from the US in the 1960s.

Mexico has also taken efforts to limit the spread of the pest, which can kill livestock within weeks if not treated. It had started to build a $51m sterile fly production facility.

The USDA has previously said 500 million flies would need to be released weekly to push the fly back to the Darien Gap, the stretch of rainforest between Panama and Colombia.