Liberty Caucus Explained

House Liberty Caucus
Leader1 Title:	Chairman
Leader1 Name:	Warren Davidson
Predecessor:	Liberty Caucus Tea Party Caucus
Position:	Right-wing
Seats1 Title:	Seats in House Republican Conference
Colors:	Red
Country:	United States

The House Liberty Caucus is a congressional caucus consisting of conservative, libertarian, and libertarian conservative members of the United States House of Representatives.^[1]

Prior to the formal creation of the House Liberty Caucus, Rep. Ron Paul hosted a luncheon in Washington, D.C. every Thursday for a group of Republican members of the House of Representatives that he called the Liberty Caucus.^[2] The group was closely connected to the political action committee known as the Republican Liberty Caucus and "support[ed] individual rights, limited government and free enterprise".^[3] After the 112th Congress began and Ron Paul switched his focus to his presidential campaign, his luncheon was replaced by a formal congressional member organization. That member organization was named the House Liberty Caucus and was initially chaired by Justin Amash.^{[4] [5]} The House Liberty Caucus was joined by Republican members who wanted to "focus on specific issues like economic freedom, individual liberty, and following the Constitution".^[1] During his time in Congress, Jared Polis of Colorado was the only Democratic member of the caucus.^[6] The caucus has been characterized as "conservative with a libertarian emphasis" and was associated with the Tea Party movement.^[7] In June 2014, the caucus supported Raúl Labrador's campaign for House Majority Leader.^{[8] [9]} In February 2019, Politico reported that the House Liberty Caucus had eight members.^[10]

As of November 2023, Rep. Warren Davidson is listed as the leader of the Congressional Liberty Caucus.

Members

Current members:

• Andy Biggs of Arizona^[11]
• Warren Davidson of Ohio
• Paul Gosar of Arizona^[11]
• Morgan Griffith of Virginia^[12]
• Jim Jordan of Ohio
• Thomas Massie of Kentucky
• Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington^[13]
• Scott Perry of Pennsylvania
• Tim Walberg of Michigan

Former Members:

• Justin Amash of Michigan – retired in 2020
• Kerry Bentivolio of Michigan – lost renomination in 2014^[14]
• Paul Broun of Georgia – ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 2014^[15]
• Jason Chaffetz of Utah^{[16] [17]} – resigned in 2017
• Curt Clawson of Florida – retired in 2016
• Scott Garrett of New Jersey – defeated in 2016 general election^[15]
• Tom Graves of Georgia^[13] – resigned in 2020
• Vicky Hartzler of Missouri – ran unsuccessfully for the 2022 United States Senate election in Missouri^[16]
• Tim Huelskamp of Kansas – lost renomination in 2016
• Walter Jones of North Carolina – died 2019
• Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming – retired from the House in 2016^[15]
• Mick Mulvaney of South Carolina – appointed as Director of the Office of Management and Budget in 2017^[1]
• Jared Polis of Colorado (Democrat) – ran successfully for 2018 Colorado gubernatorial election, currently Governor of Colorado. Polis was the only Democratic member of the Liberty Caucus.
• Matt Salmon of Arizona – retired in 2016^[15]
• Steve Stockman of Texas – ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 2014
• Marlin Stutzman of Indiana – ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 2016
• Rob Woodall of Georgia^[16] – retired in 2020

See also

• Freedom Caucus
• Libertarian Republican
• Libertarian conservatism
• Republican Liberty Caucus
• Republican Study Committee
• Second Amendment Caucus
• Tea Party Caucus
• Tea Party movement

External links

• House Liberty Caucus

Notes and References

1. Web site: Conservatives Form Their Own Caucus Because the RSC Isn't 'Hard-Core' Enough . NationalJournal.com . January 15, 2014.
2. News: The Antiwar, Anti-Abortion, Anti-Drug-Enforcement-Administration, Anti-Medicare Candidacy of Dr. Ron Paul. Christopher. Caldwell. New York Times Magazine. July 22, 2007. July 21, 2007.
3. Web site: Statement of Principles & Positions | Republican Liberty Caucus . Rlc.org . May 4, 2015.
4. Web site: 112th Congress : Congressional Member Organizations (CMO) . Cha.house.gov . May 4, 2015.
5. Web site: That's My Congress - In Challenge to Michele Bachmann and Tea Party brand, Justin Amash forms House Liberty Caucus . Thatsmycongress.com . March 22, 2011 . May 4, 2015.
6. Web site: In Congress, so-called 'Boulder liberal' Jared Polis hasn't always acted like one. Alex. Burness. October 3, 2018.
7. Web site: Libertarian wing of GOP gains strength in Congress . WashingtonExaminer.com . January 24, 2014 . March 5, 2014.
8. Web site: Gordon . Greg . Idaho's Raul Labrador raises profile in failed bid for House leader | Idaho Politics . Idahostatesman.com . July 23, 2014.
9. News: Costa . Robert . For tea party, Republican whip race is best shot at House leadership role . The Washington Post . July 23, 2014.
10. Web site: House votes to block Trump's national emergency declaration. Sarah. Ferris. February 26, 2019. POLITICO.
11. Web site: Amash storm hits Capitol Hill. Scott. Wong. May 21, 2019.
12. Web site: U.S. Representative Morgan Griffith. March 15, 2018. U.S. House of Representatives.
13. Web site: House Liberty Caucus . Capecoralvoice.com . May 4, 2015.
14. Web site: Committees and Caucuses | Congressman Kerry Bentivolio . Bentivolio.house.gov . July 23, 2014.
15. Web site: House Liberty Caucus . Facebook . January 15, 2014.
16. Web site: Members - House Liberty Caucus . February 20, 2013 . May 4, 2015 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130220000241/http://houselibertycaucus-amash.house.gov/membership . February 20, 2013 .
17. Web site: Committees and Caucuses . August 3, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170307174346/http://chaffetz.house.gov/biography/committees.htm . March 7, 2017 . dead .