Speaker John Boehner is reportedly cracking down on another another unruly conservative.
Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) was reportedly told he will be removed as freshman liaison to leadership for bucking Speaker Boehner and Barack Obama on the recent Obamatrade legislation.
Buck voted against Obamatrade – now he is being punished.
The Hill reported:
Buck told reporters a freshman colleague approached him on Tuesday night and gave him a choice: Resign or get ousted by his peers. When Buck refused to step down, his colleague issued a threat: “Well, then we’re going to call a meeting.”
Later that evening, the chief of staff to Rep. Mimi Walters (R-Calif.), the freshman liaison to leadership, sent out an email asking for freshman members to gather at 8:30 a.m. Thursday.
In a brief interview, Walters declined to disclose exactly what the meeting would be about. But in a statement, she said, “a majority of the freshman class has expressed concerns I share regarding the leadership of our class president.”
Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) joked that he’s “still got the record for being kicked off two committees.” House GOP leaders removed him from the Budget and Agriculture panels in 2012 as payback for repeatedly bucking the party line.
He accused the GOP leadership of having misplaced priorities.
“Leaders unite, they don’t divide. That’s been the Republican concern about President Barack Obama, that he’s a divider. And we have our leadership doing the same thing,” he said.
UPDATE: Buck survived the wrath of leadership.