Rep. Anna Paulina Luna revealed Thursday that she was the one who called on former Rep. Ken Buck to leave the House Freedom Caucus.
“I don’t know that I’ve publicly said this, but with what Representative Buck had done, especially to another member of Congress, in potentially hamstringing Rep. [Lauren] Boebert’s election, I actually was the member that came forward and asked him to leave the Freedom Caucus,” Ms. Luna, Florida Republican, said on Fox Business.
“And as a result of that, he was actually expelled from the Freedom Caucus. So, you know, we have a code of honor here. And as a result of that, if you can’t live by that code of honor, then you don’t deserve the title,” she said.
Mr. Buck, Colorado Republican, was ousted from the conservative House GOP faction last week over his breaking with Republicans on key issues. A week earlier, he announced he would be leaving Congress before his term was up.
He had announced he would not seek reelection in November but ultimately decided to leave early, angering his colleagues because his departure further reduced Republicans’ thin control of the House.
His last day was March 23.
Minutes before his ousting, Mr. Buck told The Washington Times that the GOP conference has become too “MAGA” for him.
“I think we are less of a conservative party and more of a MAGA party now,” he said.
When MR. Buck announced he would be retiring early, he called the current congressional term “the worst year of the nine years and three months” that he’d been in Congress.
The size of the GOP has been shrinking, with several Republicans announcing their retirement and others leaving early.
Rep. Mike Gallagher, Wisconsin Republican, announced last week that he would vacate his seat next month without finishing his term.
When he leaves, the GOP will only hold a four-seat majority in the House, meaning House Speaker Mike Johnson will only be able to lose two votes to pass Republican legislation.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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