House Budget Committee chairman Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-TX) is currently silent on whether or not the intransigent House Appropriations Committee chairwoman Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX) should be allowed to continue as a committee chair on a prized House panel despite continually voting against the wishes of the House GOP conference.
Arrington spokespersons Danny Jativa and Elle Ciapciak have not responded to repeated inquiries from Breitbart News about whether or not Arrington agrees with Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) that Granger should be stripped of the committee chair position on the Appropriations Committee.
Banks, in an exclusive interview with Breitbart News this week, said that Granger’s continued intransigence against the wishes of the House GOP conference should cost her the gavel. Granger is currently one of the leaders and the highest profile intransigent opposing House Judiciary Committee chairman Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) for the Speakership. She has voted against him on all three ballots this week, including the latest one on Friday morning.
“Kay Granger doesn’t deserve to be chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee,” Banks told Breitbart News earlier in the week. “She’s blocking the most fiscally conservative choice we’ve ever had to be the Speaker of the House. And she should lose her gavel for that.”
Normally, a member is not allowed to serve on a key committee like the Appropriations Committee—never mind be its chair—if they vote repeatedly against the wishes of the conference. Granger’s continued votes against the Republican conference nominee for Speaker, Jordan, could end up costing her the gavel. She seems to be leading the charge against Jordan as well, as at least six other intransigents—Reps. Mike Simpson (R-ID), Steve Womack (R-AR), John Rutherford (R-FL), Tony Gonzales (R-TX), and Jake Ellzey (R-TX)—are also on the Appropriations Committee. Several Republican aides including several in multiple different leadership offices have told Breitbart News there are discussions ongoing about stripping all of them of their assignment to the Appropriations Committee when a Speaker is elected no matter who it is.
Committee assignments getting stripped is hardly the only consequence being discussed. Others are talking about cutting off access to party campaign funds, while even more are talking about party-backed primary challenges against these people. The specific consequences that each will face remain to be seen.
Arrington’s silence in the face of the calls for justice against Granger’s intransigence is particular significant for a number of reasons. First and foremost, Granger has been openly floating Arrington—her fellow Texan—as a possible replacement candidate for Speaker should Jordan not make it. If Arrington were to run for Speaker in such a scenario, he would certainly need to answer whether Granger should be allowed to keep her gavel—and whether the rest of the intransigents should be allowed to serve on the Appropriations Committee—if he were to win. As of now, Arrington’s office, particularly Jativa and Ciapciak, will not answer whether the Texan and Budget Committee chairman would entertain such pushes for a speakership bid—and to his credit for now Arrington has been supportive of Jordan and continues to vote for Jordan.
Per a source familiar: the Texas GOP delegation is going to talk about placing Jodey Arrington’s name in nomination for speaker. Granger has raised the idea, but only wants to do it if the delegation can unite and agree to vote for him as a block.
— Juliegrace Brufke (@juliegraceb) October 20, 2023
But Arrington is already attempting to seize the speakership, sources in other House GOP offices told Breitbart News. As several establishment Republicans press Jordan to drop out of the race—something his team and allies insist he will never do—Granger and other intransigents are working to try to draft Arrington into the race. Arrington, a House GOP aide with knowledge of the matter told Breitbart News, would be willing to go to conference as a candidate in such a scenario.
