Freedom Caucus wins an Intel war

Jan 16, 2025

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INSIDE THE INTEL CHAIR DRAMA

The House Freedom Caucus has been in a cold war with now-former Intelligence Chair Mike Turner. Speaker Mike Johnson ended it officially on Thursday — and it seems clear that hardliners won.

Johnson claimed Thursday that no Freedom Caucus members demanded that he remove Turner (R-Ohio), but conservatives in the group have made it clear they aren’t his biggest fans.

The feud broke out into the open after he made a cryptic post about a “serious national security” threat last year, which turned out to be intelligence related to a space-based nuclear weapon. Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, called on Johnson to launch a formal inquiry into Turner’s statement and accused Turner of trying to use scare tactics to build support for sending more aid to Ukraine and renewing a controversial surveillance power. (Though HFC types weren’t the only ones angry with Turner over the episode.)

Reminder: Conservatives have repeatedly railed against sending additional aid to Ukraine and wanted stricter limits on the intelligence community’s surveillance authority. Turner’s side won that fight during a months-long showdown last year.

So it’s hard to see how that fight wasn’t somehow relevant to Turner’s ouster, given Johnson’s need to stay on the good side of his rebellious right flank. Intelligence is a select committee, meaning Johnson picks GOP members and leadership unilaterally — many House Republicans were shocked when the speaker tossed him.

And hardliners seemed satisfied with his new pick, Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.).

“I think Rick will do a great job,” Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) said, adding that he felt Crawford worked well across the conference. “Obviously this is a call for the speaker, I respect whoever he thinks will do a good job.” And Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.) said it would be “a good, fresh start for a new session and a new administration.”

Crawford voted against Ukraine aid last year, which would make him more popular with conservatives and is a significant shift from Turner, known for being one of the strongest supporters of Ukraine in the conference. And in a statement after the new committee membership was announced, Crawford hinted that he backed the Freedom Caucus’ stance on limiting surveillance by the intelligence community — though he didn’t make any commitments about scaling it back. Crawford backed the surveillance legislation that many Freedom Caucus members and privacy hawks opposed.

“Since joining the Committee in 2017, I have witnessed firsthand that abuse within our nation’s security apparatus has eroded trust in our institutions and compromised America’s ability to gather intelligence,” Crawford said. “As Chairman, I will aggressively uphold our mandate to provide credible and robust oversight of the Intelligence Community’s funding and activities.”

The Arkansas Republican is the most senior member of the committee and has kept a relatively low profile. And some of conservatives’ praise might not only be about Crawford himself, but also who Johnson didn’t pick for the lead spot. Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) was someone who was apparently eyeing the spot, which likely would’ve been a problem for some hardliners. He told Ogles to “fucking check himself” after he called for the Turner inquiry.

Conservatives got a few other wins on the committee, too: Johnson added Reps. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) and Eli Crane (R-Ariz.) to the panel on Thursday.

— Mia McCarthy, with assists from Meredith Lee Hill

GOOD EVENING! Welcome to Inside Congress, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Thursday, Jan. 16, where we’re prepping for our first Senate Friday (let's see how long this lasts).

A message from Americans for Prosperity:

Congress faces a countdown to protect prosperity. Allowing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) to expire means a $1,500 tax hike for families. Let's work together to ensure this cornerstone of economic growth endures. Learn more.

WELCOME SENATOR MOODY — YOU MIGHT ALREADY HAVE A CHALLENGER

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody will take over Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) seat once he becomes secretary of State. If she chooses to run again, she’ll have the incumbency advantage — but she likely won’t go unchallenged.

Mills isn’t ruling out running against her in two years, after announcing last week that he planned to run for the seat, no matter who Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed.

“We’re still looking heavily at the seat. We’re still considering the seat in ‘26,” Mills said in a brief interview on Thursday after Moody was announced. He also noted he texted President-elect Donald Trump soon after the announcement to talk to the president-elect about it.

Mills added that he respects the governor’s decision. He said Moody was a “strong pick,” but pointed to her initial endorsement of DeSantis for president, saying it was “somewhat risky when you've endorsed against the current president.”

Trump and DeSantis were seen golfing just two days ago, where Mills said he presumed the two talked about Moody before the announcement

Read more about Moody from our Florida team here.

— Mia McCarthy

32-HOUR WORKWEEK MEETS HILL BACKLASH

Democrats ended the 2024 election saying they needed to find better ways to appeal to the working class. The Congressional Progressive Staff Association’s attempt to improve working conditions — a proposal for a 32-hour work week for Hill staffers — met a swift wave of backlash.

“I am deeply grateful for the work that [my staff] do,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told reporters. “The 32-hour work week is a terrible idea.”

Broadly, liberals acknowledged the need to improve the working environment on Capitol Hill that’s known for long hours and low pay. But they questioned the strategy of releasing the letter days before Trump was set to be sworn in.

“This is so tone deaf. And quite frankly, insulting to real people and constituents they represent. In politics and government you work hard for the greater good. We all make our choices, but if you want to only work 32 hours a week you need to be somewhere else,” posted John Anzalone, who’d been the pollster for President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign.

The proposal: The group representing progressive staff members had proposed a rotating 32-hour work week in a letter to House and Senate leaders Thursday. Staff members could still work long hours when their boss was around, but when Congress was in session, district office staff could take a four-day week, and D.C. office staff could take a four-day week when their boss was in the district.

The group pushed back on the criticism, with spokesperson Michael Suchecki saying there was a “fundamental misunderstanding” about the proposal and that they were not calling for Congress to “jeopardize its productivity.”

“Let me be clear — there is no wrong time to call for better working conditions,” Suchecki said.

— Nicholas Wu, with assists from Eleanor Mueller and Mia McCarthy

A message from Americans for Prosperity:

HUDDLE HOTDISH

Tim Scott scooped DeSantis this morning.

Schumer's attempt to kill fun didn't work.

The Senate has been working 32-hour work weeks guys….

And of course, Almost Friday.

QUICK LINKS

Marco solo: Trump could end Day 1 with a one-man Cabinet, from Ursula Perano and Jordain Carney

Progressive Hill staff group pitches lighter workweek from Nicholas Wu

Pelosi is skipping Trump's inauguration, from Nicholas Wu

As Biden exits the stage, Democrats are uncharacteristically quiet, from Paul Kane at the Washington Post

The House Democrat who wants Trump to go big on tariffs, from Jeff Stein at the Washington Post

A message from Americans for Prosperity:

The expiration of the TCJA would lead to an average $1,500 tax hike per family, compounding economic challenges already facing American households. The TCJA's lower rates have spurred growth, increased wages, and kept American businesses competitive globally.

With 90% of Americans wanting to keep their current tax rates, it's clear this is a bipartisan priority. Congress has the responsibility to safeguard this achievement for future generations. Learn more.

TRANSITIONS

James Kwon is joining the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus and Aspire PAC as communications director. He previously was communications director for Rep. Seth Magaziner (D-R.I.).

Drew Wallace is now Democratic staff director for the Senate Rules Committee under ranking member Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). He previously was deputy assistant to the president and deputy director for the Senate in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs.

Tim Hite, senior counsel on the House Financial Services Committee's digital assets panel since 2023, is leaving for a role as policy director at cryptocurrency firm Exodus.

Speaker Mike Johnson named Bill Duhnke to be his new policy director. Duhnke is a former Senate Appropriations staffer and Navy officer who served on the Base Realignment and Closure Commission in the 1990s.

TOMORROW IN CONGRESS

The Senate is in session, the House is out

FRIDAY AROUND THE HILL

9 a.m. — Kristi Noem confirmation hearing for DHS secretary.

TRIVIA

WEDNESDAY’S ANSWER: A lucky reader, who asked to remain anonymous, correctly answered that Frances Perkins was the one who said "I came to Washington to work for God, FDR and the millions of forgotten, plain common workingmen."

TODAY’S QUESTION, from the reader: Who is the only U.S. Senator to die in battle while he was in office, and what battle was it?

The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Inside Congress. Send your answers to insidecongress@politico.com.

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