The Freedom Caucus Coup in the House of Representatives and the Implications for Democracy around the World.

Last week something happened in the US House of Representatives that could affect the future of democracy around the world. Namely, a radical rump of the Republican Party, the GOP, gained numerous concessions that will allow them to promote their undemocratic and fascist tendencies.

The Context

The rump in question were 20 members of the Freedom Caucus (FC). A tenuously Trump-aligned fraction that emerged out of the ashes of the Tea Party. Of course, there are differences, but they share at least one idea, a libertarian view of the state. That is to say, a minimal state whose role is to protect capital and US borders.

But in a context where the Democratic Party politicised federal law enforcement to investigate Trump and the January 6^th, 2021 attacks on the Capital, the reverse is true. What is more, Federal agencies have begun to suggest that the right-wing extremism that we saw that day is the country’s main domestic terrorist threat. An issue now linked to the Trump / FC wing of the GOP that helped organise it.

It is unclear whether an investigation into these links would be conclusive. What is clear, though, is that the Democratic Party, the neoconservative and neoliberal wings of the GOP will use any link to damage the Trump/FC fraction in the polls and the courts. And the libertarian rump fears this.

Charles M. Blow, writing in the New York Times. points to FC rep. Pat Fallon’s attempt to impeach the Homeland Security secretary, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, as evidence of this. Positing that the latter’s comments on the Trump / domestic extremism link motivated Fallon.

The Freedom Caucus counter-revolution

Chances are we will never find out because the concessions the FC received for supporting the speaker suggest the end of any investigation into extemist links. A victory they have proclaimed as the second Church Committee, evoking the original’s reining in of covert actions in the 1970s.

Yet, while the Church Committee reigned in the CIA’s covert actions, it also promoted the privatisation of intelligence activities to circumvent oversight. A reform undertaken by the Neoliberal/Neoconservative alliance that has run the federal government since Reagan; disrupted only by Trump’s 4-year administration.

Therefore, over the next two years, it will be interesting to watch this rump defend its inroads into US political power. Using their new powers to investigate the Democratic Party and distract from their corruption and neo-Nazi links.

There are several powers which, according to the media, they will use to achieve their aims. The most important ones are the convening of an FC-led subcommittee on the weaponisation of the federal government, changes to ethics investigation and powers to block government spending. Though, because of the small minority needed to create chaos in the House, the FC may achieve little beyond stalling processes.

Still, with federal law enforcement even more politicised by the GOP, we could see further weakening of democratic structures. Trump and his supporters tested them back in 2021, and failed. But if an FC candidate, or Trump himself, takes the White House in 2024, they will be tested again.

Undermining democracy around the world

And if to remind us of the dangers, on the same weekend that the FC’s machinations paid off, we also saw a January 6th style event play out in Brazil’s capital. New President Lula’s swift actions stopped the coup attempt, but the right-wing’s threat remains an issue. In particular, there are concerns over the links between Lula’s right-wing predecessor Bolsonaro, his allies in Brazil and right-wing elements in the US.

They have reason to worry because while Biden voiced his support for Lula, the Trump/FC rump does not share this view. If we combine this with their involvement in the January 6^th attacks, it becomes obvious that their undemocratic tendencies are an issue for the planet, not just the US.

In this light, we can see the danger of what the FC achieved last weekend. A feat that endangers democracies around the world.