A group of 16 GOP representatives is on course to derail House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's leverage in negotiations with President Joe Biden and the Democrats over the debt ceiling.
The group of 16, identified by Axios, all have never voted to raise the debt ceiling, including under former President Donald Trump, meaning they are unlikely to break their streak now.
The 16 were identified as Reps. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Tom Emmer (R-MN), Richard Hudson (R-NC), Gary Palmer (R-AL), Jason Smith (R-MO), James Comer (R-KY), Bruce Westerman (R-AR), Ken Buck (R-CO), Warren Davidson (R-OH), Thomas Massie (R-KY), Tom McClintock (R-CA), Alex Mooney (R-WV), Bill Posey (R-FL), and David Rouzer (R-NC).
The group includes both McCarthy loyalists and those who famously rebelled against him, refusing to vote for him in January's speakership bid. One commonality among them, however, is their freshness; none were in office before 2017. This could spell good fortune for McCarthy, as they haven't had as much time to solidify their opposition to raising the debt ceiling.
Democrats seem confident that McCarthy will be unable to wrangle together the votes necessary for proper negotiations.
"[W]e know why the speaker has struggled and is unable to produce a plan — delaying it or avoiding it — he doesn’t have the votes for one, in all likelihood," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said earlier this month.
Those that responded to contacts from Axios remained ambiguous about whether they would vote with McCarthy on the upcoming negotiations.
Norman "will almost certainly not support a 'clean' debt-ceiling increase" but "remains optimistic" about the current negotiations leading to spending cuts, a spokesman told the outlet.
Emmer didn't give a definitive response either but pledged that the "United States will not default on its debt. Period," and said Republicans have a responsibility to meet "our obligations while fulfilling our promise to voters who elected us to rein in reckless federal spending.”
The Treasury Department has already started "extraordinary measures" to manage the national debt before the country defaults, which is projected to happen sometime over the summer.