Marjorie Taylor Greene Shares House Republicans' First Priority

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, shared Kevin McCarthy's first legislative priority after a rocky start to his House speakership.

McCarthy, who secured enough votes to become speaker of the House after 15 rounds of voting early Saturday morning, announced what the first introduced bill would be in the GOP-controlled Congress shortly after his victory. Republicans will soon vote on a bill that would repeal the funding of 87,000 Internal Revenue Services (IRS) agents. Funding for the agency was included in the Inflation Reduction Act, which was passed last August.

"When we come back, our very first bill will repeal the funding for 87,000 IRS agents," McCarthy said, receiving a thunderous applause from his conference. "We believe government should be to help you, not go after you."

Greene, seen as one of the leading "MAGA Republicans" in the House, touted his pledge as only the first of many conservative policies that would be passed by House Republicans.

"This is only the beginning of the great things we are going to do," Greene tweeted Saturday. "Repeal the 87,000 IRS Army!"

McCarthy's pledge follows a days-long, contentious speakership vote. Roughly 20 hard-right lawmakers refused to back the California Republican, listing several demands for Congress' rules package. After nearly five days of failed votes, McCarthy eventually won enough support from his conference to become speaker.

Although Greene is viewed as one of the chamber's most conservative members, she broke from her closest allies to support McCarthy, previously acknowledging that other right-wing alternatives would be unlikely to defeat him. Relations with Representatives Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Matt Gaetz of Florida appeared to grow tense, as they traded public barbs amid the speaker battle.

Before any legislative bill can receive a vote, House Republicans must next vote on the rules package.

It remains unknown how many Republicans will oppose the rules package, but so far at least one, Representative Tony Gonzales of Texas, a centrist, has pledged to vote against it. Because Republicans only won a slim majority during last year's midterms, McCarthy can only afford to lose a handful of votes.

However, the bill that would defund the IRS would likely stall in the Senate. Any legislation would need to pass the 60-vote filibuster, meaning it would need substantial support from Democrats, who hold a majority of seats in the chamber. Furthermore, it remains unknown if President Joe Biden would sign it.

The bill could also unite Republicans, who remain divided after the speaker race and about how far right they can govern. Meanwhile, no Republican has publicly spoken out against the bill, and several others praised McCarthy for making it a top priority.

Why Conservatives Oppose Hiring 87,000 IRS Agents

Funding for the new IRS agents was included in the Inflation Reduction Act, a law passed by Democrats last year aimed at lowering inflation, which created economic uncertainty for millions of Americans in recent months. The bill passed the House on party lines and has faced conservative criticism.

The agents are intended to monitor digital currency to ensure citizens don't illegally evade paying their taxes, with the Inflation Reduction Act set to raise $124 billion in revenue from collecting taxes over a 10 year period from the rich and large corporations.

Republicans seized on this aspect of the bill in their campaign messaging, running on opposition to their hiring. Republicans have said these agents will be used to target everyday Americans or small businesses. However, the IRS has said the increased number of agents will not equate to a higher audit rate for low and middle class taxpayers.

Newsweek reached out to McCarthy and Greene's offices for comment.