“This coming year will be pivotal as we work to deliver on President [Donald] Trump’s agenda, continue the fight to reduce government spending, secure our borders, and defend our constitutional freedoms,” he said in a statement.
Harris was initially elected chairman of the caucus on Sept. 17, succeeding Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), who stepped down from the chairmanship after losing his primary.The caucus, whose members are not publicized even though some have identified themselves as such, will have leverage in the 119th Congress.
Harris said he did not envision himself as leader of the caucus, which holds considerable bargaining power given the slim GOP majority.
Referring to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) retaining the gavel in the 119th Congress, Harris said in the interview: “He’s delivering on what he said he was going to deliver. And I think that if he continues to deliver on that, that it won’t be an issue.”
Harris said Johnson cannot bring an omnibus bill to the House floor. Such a bill funds the government but includes other pieces of legislation that may not get a standalone vote.
Johnson is about to unveil a bill to fund the government at current levels as the government is set to shut down at the end of the week. Known as a continuing resolution, it is expected to include items such as a one-year extension of the farm bill, which funds nutrition programs, crop insurance, and other agriculture initiatives.
“We’re fellow conservatives. We believe in a lot of the same things,” Harris said in November, referring to Johnson. “And he’s always been receptive to my input and welcomes the input.”
The Freedom Caucus was founded in 2015, five years after the conservative Tea Party movement, which was a response to then-President Barack Obama’s liberal agenda.
While the caucus will have a “tempering influence” on Trump, it will give him some leeway, Harris said.
“There are a lot of people in the caucus who think that President Trump probably didn’t restrain spending as much as he should have in his first term given that the economy was good,” he said.
“[However,] there’s going to be a little more leeway for the president this time, but we will always make the argument that we have to be mindful of our federal debt and our federal deficits, and we have to have a long-term plan to deal with it.”
