Republicans were all smiles after picking Mike Johnson as the new House speaker -- but the party has been disarray during much of his short tenure
Republicans were all smiles after picking Mike Johnson as the new House speaker -- but the party has been disarray during much of his short tenure. AFP

KEY POINTS

  • Rep. Gimenez said many House GOP members are "frustrated" with the mounting exits
  • Rep. Pence said the "big losses" for the party are "alarming"
  • Rep. Pfluger said he is "worried" about who will "step up" following the departures

Republican lawmakers are feeling the deepening divide in the party now more than ever following recent retirement announcements from some of the party's most prominent members, including House Energy and Commerce Committee chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington.

"A lot of us are frustrated with what's going on, and that's just being flat-out honest," Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida told CNN Monday following the recent exit announcements of Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado, China select committee Chair Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, and eight Republicans from the House's Energy and Commerce Committee.

Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska said the GOP's governing issues drove the departures. "When you're divided in your own conferences, the joy of the job is harder," he said.

"You get this panic and anxiety like, 'OK, who's going to step up?... So, yeah, I'm very worried about it," Rep. August Pfluger of Texas told the outlet.

Rep. Greg Pence of Indiana said the huge number of recent exit announcements are "big losses for us" and is "alarming."

Even before Republicans expressed concerns over the mounting number of retirements within the party, the divide has been apparent. In the impeachment vote to oust Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas earlier this month, three GOP members voted no. Buck, among the three, said the impeachment move was merely a "stunt" while Gallagher said it would "pry open the Pandora's box of perpetual impeachment."

The wave of GOP departures comes at a critical time for the House as it is under immense pressure from the Senate, Democrats and the Biden administration to pass a bipartisan foreign aid bill that includes military assistance for Ukraine and Israel.

The disconnect is even more noticeable in Senate, when 22 GOP senators voted for the controversial foreign aid package, including Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Sen. Todd Young of Indiana, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, and Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota.

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