GOP Leaders Erupt Over Gas Tax Suspension
GOP Leaders Erupt Over Gas Tax Suspension
The News
House Republican leaders fell into a shouting match in Speaker Mike Johnson's office Tuesday night over a proposal to suspend the federal gas tax before the midterms.
The 9:15 p.m. session was described by sources to the Washington Sun as one of the most contentious of the year — and by some as one of the craziest meetings they had ever been in.
Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris banged the desk, cursed and declared "war," according to the reporting. Rep. Clay Higgins called Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Sam Graves a "disrespectful fool" and walked out.
Timeline
Harris publicly criticized President Biden for trying to suspend the federal gas tax. Graves brought a printed copy of that post into the room Tuesday night.
Harris used leverage on a procedural vote to extract a promise from leadership that they would discuss suspending the gas tax before the election.
Johnson summons top GOP members to his office to talk through the gas tax suspension. Members curse at each other and storm off, sources said.
Accounts of the meeting surface publicly. Johnson announces the House will finish its work early and adjourn until after the midterms.
Reactions
Higgins, per the accounts of the meeting, aimed his "disrespectful fool" line at Graves, then left the room.
Harris, who chairs the Freedom Caucus, hit the desk and used profanity as he pushed for a floor vote, sources said, telling colleagues he was ready for "war."
Graves, who controls the committee the bill would normally move through, objected to bypassing regular order to rush it to the floor.
Sources in the room told the Washington Sun the fight "got personal."
What's Next
Sept. 16 is the House's final session day. Members are not due back until after Nov. 3.
That leaves the gas tax suspension bill parked, with no floor vote scheduled before the election and no commitment on whether it returns in the next Congress.
The open question for Johnson is whether the blowup costs him votes inside an already thin majority.
More
The Numbers
The national average price of gasoline was $4.37 on Wednesday. Diesel reached $6.31 per gallon.
Those prices are the political pressure behind Harris's push: a suspension of the federal gas tax is the fastest thing House Republicans could put on the board before voters go to the polls.
The Split
The dispute is less about the gas tax itself than about process — whether leadership should skip the committee and force a floor vote weeks before the midterms.
Poll
Should House Republicans force a floor vote to suspend the federal gas tax?
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