The two have clashed several times in the past, but Harris indicated that the particular spat factored into the Conservative group’s thinking.
“I think the way she refers to a fellow member is not the way we expect our members to refer to other fellows, especially female members,” Harris said Thursday. The Maryland Republican declined to say how he voted, but called the decision to fire him “an appropriate move.”
It is the first time the Conservative caucus has launched one of its own and reflects the group’s growing frustration with the Greens. He’s closely aligned this year with Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who has run afoul of many independent caucus members when he backed both his Rocky speakership bid and a debt deal with President Joe Biden. At the same time, the group is operating at a post-Trump crossroads, with some at risk of becoming too friendly with the party establishment.
Asked if his support and loan deal for McCarthy fed into the decision to remove him from the board, Harris replied: “I think that’s all important.”
“I think the straw that broke the camel’s back was publicly saying things about another member that no one should,” he said.
A Freedom Caucus spokeswoman declined to comment on Green’s position, noting that it does not comment on committee membership or internal processes. A spokesman for Green did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Green usually attends the group’s weekly campus meeting. But that closed-door meeting is for members only, meaning he can no longer attend.
Although this is the first time a member has been formally voted out of the group, he is not the first to leave. Then-rep. Justin Amash of Michigan previously left the group in 2019 and left the Republican Party soon after. Harris noted, “There was another member two years ago who would have asked us to leave, but we decided not to.”
It may not end on the green. There is also talk of targeting a few members beyond the Georgia Republican Party, who critics say are violating group standards by being inactive. House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) previously told POLITICO that he rejected those purge demands that came before the vote to remove Green.
“There was a difference of opinion on the speaker’s race. Debt ceiling, there were differences of opinion. And we had to get 80 percent on any major issue,” said Rep. Ralph Norman (RS.C.), a member of the Freedom Caucus. previously told Politico, represents the threshold necessary for the group to take a unified stance. “On some big issues, we just couldn’t get there.”
The group is currently at the center of a fight over government funding as they try to push McCarthy and senior members to go below the level set in the debt deal and hold the line when he eventually has to negotiate with the White House. Senate Democrats.
Although the group was largely united in favoring lower spending, They privately negotiated what their strategy should be After they cut a deal with McCarthy, they ended a week-long standoff that stalled the House floor.
However, Harris argued that there were no other “major factions” after launching Green and praised Perry.
“It’s not even a speed bump,” Harris added.
Olivia Beavers contributed to this report.
“Friend of animals everywhere. Devoted analyst. Total alcohol scholar. Infuriatingly humble food trailblazer.”