Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., told Newsmax on Wednesday that GOP House members, including several in the Freedom Caucus, were "wrong" to vote against a rule in apparent retaliation against Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., over the debt ceiling.
Eleven Republicans joined with Democrats on Monday in voting against a rule to establish floor votes on a bill concerning gas stove regulation, a move that several Freedom Caucus members said was in response to McCarthy's handling of negotiations over the debt ceiling.
"Kevin McCarthy's leadership is absolutely outstanding, and I don't say that lightly. I say that very factually," Meuser said on "Wake Up America."
"This action was, I think, very wrong-headed. ... They voted with the Democrats, congratulations. Look, we're going to do everything we can to keep everybody together, bring everybody together, have everybody in our Republican caucus have an open voice. But this is equivalent to me being upset that border security was not in the fiscal responsibility bill, and then voting against a border security bill upcoming because I'm so upset. It was unnecessary and just a small, small tactic."
Asked if McCarthy would address this issue, Meuser said: "Sure, he's very respectful and he's going to bring them in and speak and see how we improve things moving forward."
Meuser added that there's "a time to be individuals and a time to be a team, and there's also time to look out for what's in the best interest of the country. And they voted against the REINS Act, which is something very, very significant. This wasn't just an insignificant bill, so I just think they were just wrong."