Conservative Rebellion and McCarthy's Struggle for Control in the House

Conservative hardliners in the House Freedom Caucus are uncertain about their next steps after reaching an agreement with Speaker Kevin McCarthy to reopen the House floor. While they want to drive down federal spending, they have not settled on a strategy or clear demands, making it difficult for leadership to satisfy them. The group's initial win was cutting $130 billion from this year's spending bills, but some want spending bills below fiscal 2022 levels. McCarthy's biggest skeptics on the right are happy to use hardball tactics in their slim majority, but overplaying their hand could backfire.