Rep. Scott Garrett, R-Wantage, talks to West Bergen Tea Party members at their monthly meeting at Larkin House in Wyckoff on Aug. 25, 2015
Speaker fight gives Scott Garrett a boost in D.C.
OCTOBER 11, 2015, 8:39 PM LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2015, 10:36 PM
BY HERB JACKSON
RECORD COLUMNIST |
THE RECORD
In July, moderate Republicans in the House wanted Speaker John Boehner to strip Rep. Scott Garrett, New Jersey’s most conservative congressman, of his subcommittee chairmanship. That effort came a short time after Garrett told Republican leaders that he would not contribute to or raise money for his party’s campaign committee because it supported gay candidates.
But last month, it was Boehner who decided to give up his gavel, and last week the man he favored to succeed him as speaker, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, withdrew his candidacy. A major factor in both events was opposition from the 30 to 40 members of the arch-conservative House Freedom Caucus, co-founded by Garrett.
Now Garrett’s position as chairman of a subcommittee that regulates Wall Street may have become even safer. As a leader of a group the next speaker will be seeking to woo, Garrett appears less likely to face a reprimand for not paying his party dues.
While it could still turn out that moderates get the next speaker to marginalize the power of the Freedom Caucus — Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., said Friday that the group “should have been crushed long ago” — the only way a Republican could become speaker without Freedom Caucus votes is by brokering a deal with Democrats.
What is far from clear, however, is whether the leadership battle will provide a long-term political boost to Garrett himself.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/jackson-speaker-fight-gives-scott-garrett-a-boost-in-d-c-1.1430349
