House Republicans will consider a rules change next year that would make it harder for a rogue lawmaker or group of lawmakers to oust the speaker.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., introduced the proposal on Wednesday to the House Rules Committee, which is weighing potential rules changes for the new Congress that convenes in January.
Citing the “turmoil” caused by unexpected leadership changes, Nunes said his proposal would change the rules so that a majority vote by the ruling party would be required before a member can introduce a special resolution that would trigger a vote to vacate the speaker’s chair.
The proposal by Nunes comes almost a year after the departure of former House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, who retired from the top leadership post in part because an opposing conservative lawmaker, Rep. Mark Meadows, of North Carolina, had threatened to trigger a vote to oust him using a privileged resolution to “vacate the chair.”
The Nunes proposal would require such a resolution to first win a majority vote of the Republican conference or Democratic caucus, depending on which party controls the chamber.
The change is meant to neutralize a group of House conservatives, many of them members of the House Freedom Caucus, who frequently buck the GOP leadership by voting against key Republican legislation.
While no one in the GOP has threatened to try to oust House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., who succeeded Boehner, many Republicans don’t want to take any chances. The House GOP is eager to curtail a repeat of last October, when Boehner’s abrupt departure and Ryan’s last-minute ascension was preceded by weeks of uncertainty about who would lead the House.
“The proposal makes sense, seeing what we went through,” said Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Ohio, a member of the Rules panel.
House Freedom Caucus members say they won’t vote for the change and point out the original rules of the House were authored by Thomas Jefferson.
“A House rule to change Jeffersonian rules that has served our institution well since its founding would be ill advised,” Meadows told the Washington Examiner.
Since members of the House Freedom Caucus comprise a faction of close to 40 members, Republicans will likely have to rely on Democrats to help pass the altered rule, which requires a majority vote of the entire House.
Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., who is also a member of the Rules Committee, agreed with Nunes that the House many need to end the practice of allowing one member the power to call up a vote to oust the speaker.
“I don’t think it’s good for the institution,” McGovern said. “It creates uncertainty and makes it more difficult to get things done.”
The decision on whether to change the rules is months away and hinges on whether Republicans maintain the majority, which is likely.
A GOP aide said the full Republican conference will vote on potential rules changes early next year in a closed-door meeting before the House assembles on the opening day of the 115th Congress in January.
