Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) faces a challenging – yet critical – decision over who to appoint as the next chairman of the House Rules Committee, a position that sets the tone for legislation and plays a key role in The Republicans’ bond will be united in next year’s ultra-thin majority.
At least four Republicans — Reps. Virginia Foxx (N.C.), Chip Roy (Texas), Michelle Fischbach (Minn.) and Pete Sessions (Texas) — have expressed interest in the role that Johnson is responsible for appointing as speaker. Johnson predicted he would make a decision over the holidays and announce the up-to-date leader early next year.
With little time left to choose, several factors will play into Johnson’s selection — including gender, political ideology and seniority — and presents a elaborate path for the speaker as he looks to take one of his first huge moves for the 119th Congress.
“It’s very complicated,” Johnson told The Hill about his decision.
The Rules Committee is often at the center of legislative battles on Capitol Hill, is the final port of call for controversial bills before they reach the House of Representatives and decides which amendments will be voted on. The Chairman oversees this process and acts as a close ally of the leadership.
The leading candidate in the Republican race for the panel’s top spot appears to be Foxx, the outgoing chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee and a ranking member of the House Republican Conference. The North Carolina lawmaker, known for her no-nonsense demeanor, told The Hill that she informed Johnson of her interest and that he received a “positive” reception.
Foxx, who is about to celebrate her 20th year in the House, touted herself as the most experienced member at the helm of the panel, citing her past years as a member of the Rules Committee.
“I haven’t spoken out too strongly,” Foxx said of her conversations with the speaker, “but I’ve played by the rules for eight or 10 years, and I think I could do a good job.”
“There are other people I know running for this, but no one has the experience that I have, except Pete Sessions,” she added. “I just think I could do a good job.”
But Roy, a conservative hardliner and member of the Freedom Caucus who has publicly opposed the GOP leadership, is also seeking the position and told The Hill that he has spoken to Johnson about his interest.
“I do a lot of work from the Rules Committee seat, trying to figure out how to make rules, and I do that anyway. And I feel like I’m just doing it better as chairman,” Roy said.
“As cramped as it is here, as cramped as it is in this house… there will be work on the floor, right? Therefore, we want to complete the work ahead of time,” Roy added. “That’s why I think the Rules Committee is important. I think if you have the right mix, the right chairman, you can figure out how to get things done.”
Roy joined the Rules Committee in January 2023 as a result of an agreement reached during the protracted election of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as speaker that placed three hard-line conservatives on the panel, giving them the power to elect themselves Joining Democrats to suppress or block legislation before it reaches the floor.
Republican members who spoke to The Hill consider Roy’s bid a lost cause, given his repeated protests against Republican leadership on the House floor and in public comments. But his election could lend a hand Johnson stay in the good graces of hardline Conservatives, from whom he needs the support to win the speakership in January – two facts that represent a back-and-forth for the speaker.
However, Roy voted against procedural rules – laws drafted by the Rules Committee that govern how legislation is considered in the House of Representatives – even though he is a member of the Rules Committee. The votes are typically partisan tests of party loyalty, but they have been used by conservatives several times in the past two years to protest policies – at times leading to a standstill in legislative activity.
However, Roy told The Hill that he would not vote against the rules if he became chairman.
“If I were chairman of the Rules Committee, I would certainly have to support the rule,” Roy said.
Although the chairmanship decision rests with Johnson, Roy has contacted top House GOP leaders about his interest in the position, two sources told The Hill. Roy said he received a “very good response” throughout the conference.
Roy received a public endorsement from a fellow Texas Republican, Rep. John Carter. who posted on social platform X that Roy “will build the conservative coalition in the House needed to support President Trump’s priorities as chairman of the Rules Committee.”
Fischbach, meanwhile, is a Republican who doesn’t get much attention and is looking for the position. The Minnesota lawmaker — currently the second-highest ranking Republican member on the committee — came to Congress for the first time in 2021 and secured a spot on the Rules Committee that year, which she retained two years later.
Now she wants to take over the leadership of the group.
“I want to make sure that what we need to get done gets through and gets to the floor,” Fishbach told The Hill, noting that she handled the rules on the floor. “I feel qualified to take over the chairmanship.”
Fishbach noted that the dynamics at the Rules Panel will be very different next year when Republicans take triple control in Washington and President-elect Trump returns to the White House.
“It’s not necessarily just our agenda anymore,” Fishbach said. “It’s the Senate, it’s the president’s agenda that we’re working on, and so we need to make sure we work together to get it passed.”
Finally, Sessions – who chaired the committee from 2013 to 2018 – is considered a dim candidate to take on the role again. However, Sessions says his experience dealing with Freedom Caucus co-founders such as former Reps. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) and Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.) would lend a hand him in this role.
“It took a lot of time to not only listen to them but also work through the intricacies of how we would help them succeed,” Sessions said.
Sessions, who said he had spoken to Johnson a few weeks ago about his interest in the position, also noted that he had changed the five-minute rule to allow members to speak for as long as possible during committee meetings. as they wish, which contributed to the notoriously long and thorough meetings.
Another potential contender for the gavel was Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-Pa.), who also sits on the committee, according to a source. But Reschenthaler chose to remain chief deputy rather than seek the gavel of the Rules Committee.
Johnson told The Hill he has not yet made a decision about chairing the Rules Committee because he is bogged down with other matters on Capitol Hill, including government funding, the annual defense policy bill and preparing for the up-to-date Trump administration and the GOP trifecta.
“I don’t favor anyone yet,” he said of his decisions. “I have to make so many decisions every day that I’ve pushed Rules aside.”
But the delay also comes as he has to consider a number of sensitive factors that play into his high-profile selection, including gender. House Republicans are unlikely to have female committee chairs in the 119th Congress after Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.) lost to Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.) in the race to chair the House Foreign Affairs Committee . Wagner was the only woman who applied for a position on a top committee.
That vigorous could benefit Foxx or Fischbach, who, if elected chair of the Rules, would eliminate the appearance of an all-male slate of committee chairs. Johnson, for his part, hinted at a possible selection of women earlier this week when asked about the lack of women on top boards.
“As you know, we haven’t finalized all the committee chairs yet, so we’ll see how that plays out,” Johnson told reporters. “Stay tuned for the final composition of the conference chairs.”
The election of the Chairman of the Rules Committee is likely to take place soon after the up-to-date Congress meets.
While Republicans wait for Johnson’s decision, Democrats wait to see who will take the lead on the panel that will consider the legislation before it reaches the House. Asked whether Foxx and Roy were seeking the position, Rep. Jim McGovern (Massachusetts), a longtime member of the Rules Committee and the current top Democrat on the panel, laughed.
“There’s an old Chinese curse: May you live in interesting times,” McGovern said. “And I think we were cursed.”
