Republicans in the House of Representatives are in "open warfare" as right-wing hardliners are seemingly refusing to endorse any deal to keep the federal government open, reports Politico.
Tensions have boiled over in recent days as several Republicans have rejected a deal to keep the government open that was negotiated between the House Freedom Caucus and the Main Street Caucus over the weekend, which makes the likelihood of a government shutdown all but inevitable.
Although House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has tried to keep the deal negotiated by the two factions alive, the chances of it passing look more remote than ever.
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Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) is openly shredding his rebellious colleagues and has said that they don't seem to want to do anything that comes close to resembling governance.
"They don’t know what they want," he said this week. "They don’t know how to take yes for an answer. They don’t know how to define a win."
And Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), a House Freedom Caucus member who is normally also resistant to backroom DC deal making, also slammed his colleagues for refusing to take any agreement.
"For my colleagues who disagree [with the deal], I would ask them: What’s your plan?" he said. "What’s your strategy?”
Some House Republicans opposed to the deal have released lists of outlandish demands in exchange for their support, including defunding special counsel Jack Smith's prosecutions of former President Donald Trump.
"It’s a mess!" one House Republican told Politico in summing up the situation. "No one has a plan.”
