"January 4, 2023
Washington, DC
Conservative organizations and the millions of grassroots conservatives we represent are united in our support of the 20 courageous members of Congress seeking to change the status quo in Washington.
Over the past decade, the House has grown increasingly autocratic. Rank and file members are routinely denied a chance to participate in the legislative process, committees are ignored, deals and loopholes for interests abound, and there is virtually no amendment process for any bills, large or small. The outcome reflects the process: bills that cater to a handful of members in leadership and K street lobbyists, but ignore the priorities of the voters.
Months ago, these members made clear that this established way of doing things was no longer acceptable. They made public a series of proposed reforms designed to democratize the House – to engage the broader membership in legislating, and bring accountability back to the People’s House.
Rather than engage them in a good faith negotiation, Rep. Kevin McCarthy has instead maligned both the requests and the messengers. He has publicly and through proxies leveled attacks against members of his own party, including threatening to deny committee assignments for those who continue to oppose him. Moreover, he has failed to answer for, or commit to halting, his coordinated efforts in the 2022 elections to promote moderate Republican candidates over conservatives.
Because of this, he has thus far failed to garner the 218 votes necessary to lead the House GOP conference in three separate rounds of voting. The job of the Speaker is to garner consensus among disparate factions of the party, and unite them.
These members represents the millions of voters across the country who are disgusted with the business-as-usual, self-interested governance in Washington. We stand behind them and beside them in their courageous efforts to find a Speaker of the House who will represent the interests of conservatives. We encourage more conservative members to join their ranks."
