Freedom Caucus member wins slot on powerful panel

Huelskamp, the chairman of the Tea Party Caucus, becomes just the second member of the far-right Freedom Caucus to serve on the Speaker-aligned Steering panel. Retiring Rep. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) also serves on the roughly 30-member panel, which decides which Republicans receive committee chairmanships and committee slots.

{mosads}Thursday’s election marked a surprising reversal for Huelskamp. In 2012, the very same Steering Committee booted him from the Agriculture and Budget committees after he crossed then-Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and his leadership team. The Agriculture slot had been critical to Huelskamp, who represents a rural district in western Kansas.  

Five other Republicans were also elected to the Steering panel on Thursday: Reps. Susan Brooks (Ind.), Mike Rogers (Ala.), Jason Smith (Mo.), Tom Cole (Okla.) and Fred Upton (Mich.).

Cole, a former chairman of the House GOP’s campaign arm, and Upton, the Energy and Commerce Committee chairman, previously held seats on the Steering panel, a fact that suggests the overall makeup of the panel isn’t changing that much.

Still, the special election marked the first step in Speaker Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) promise to rank-and-file lawmakers to overhaul internal rules and procedures. The Freedom Caucus and its conservative allies have called for the new Speaker to decentralize power in the 246-member conference and embrace a “bottom-up” approach.