The hard-right Freedom Caucus has elected a new chairman who has endorsed one of Donald Trump's primary challengers.
Rep. Bob Good (R-VA), the freshly minted chair of the caucus that has long been aligned with the former president, previously endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who had been a member of the group when he was a House member, reported NBC News.
"Gov. Ron DeSantis has shown through action as Florida's chief executive that confronting hard challengers delivers effective results for every man, woman and child," Good said in May, when he endorsed DeSantis.
"That strength in the face of adversity is needed more today than ever before, and it is why I am unequivocally endorsing and encouraging Gov. DeSantis to run for president."
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Good also talked up DeSantis' chances for winning, while he recently questioned Trump's due to "baggage" from his criminal indictments — statements that were caught in clandestinely recorded video footage published last week by The Tennessee Star.
"He [Trump] might be the only person that can lose to Joe Biden if he's the nominee, and I don't criticize him," Good said in the clip.
Good ran unopposed and was recommended by the caucus board to replace current chairman Scott Perry (R-PA), who former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson described as a key player in Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss and allegedly sought a pardon from the former president.
"Bob Good's selection reflects a continued independent streak with the Freedom Caucus," said Thomas Gift, the founding director of the Centre on U.S. Politics at University College London. "Although the group as a whole is still mightily pro-Trump, its members don't kowtow to his every move — and some have even radicalized beyond the former president."
"That said, if Trump does return to the White House, Bob Good and the rest of the Freedom Caucus will fall in line soon enough (that is, if Good even survives a likely primary challenger)," he added. "For now, Trump still has a death grip over the GOP, and there's nothing anyone in Congress can do to change that."
