“We need to slow down the process so we can understand a little bit more the specifics and the timetable of replacement votes and reconciliation instructions, etc.,” Mark Meadows said. | AP Photo Freedom Caucus looks to delay budget — and Obamacare repeal

The House Freedom Caucus wants to delay a vote on a budget that includes Obamacare repeal instructions, a potential setback for the GOP’s — and Donald Trump’s — top priority.

The group of hardline conservatives wants more information about what a repeal bill and Obamacare replacement would look like before they support the fiscal 2017 budget. That budget blueprint — which is expected on the House floor later this week after being approved by the Senate on Tuesday or Wednesday — would unlock a fast-tracking procedure that will be used to speed a repeal through Congress.


The group did not take an official position, but Chairman Mark Meadows said that’s the general consensus after a Monday night meeting.

“We need to slow down the process so we can understand a little bit more the specifics and the timetable of replacement votes and reconciliation instructions, etc.,” the North Carolina Republican told reporters outside Tortilla Coast on the Hill.

Asked whether that means the House should vote on the budget resolution this Friday, he added: “Without specificity… we would be inclined to encourage a delay on that vote.”

Delaying the budget would set repeal efforts back by several weeks. The House is not in session next week, so the earliest they could take up the budget would be the week after Trump’s inauguration. GOP leadership had hoped to have the budget finished before the Jan. 20 inauguration.

It is unclear if Freedom Caucus members would vote against the budget if they do not get the information they seek or the delay. They want to know more about whether the repeal effort will include some replacement provisions or, if not, the timetable for putting forth a Republican alternative.

House GOP leadership sources have argued the group, created in a time of divided government, is no longer a factor after the election and will fall in line if Trump tells them to.

Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) downplayed concerns about conservative dissent on the budget last week. He said the group knows the budget is simply a vehicle to start the repeal process.

Indeed, several group members after the election said they were willing to vote for a budget they didn’t necessarily like to get repeal efforts moving. Now, though, they seem to be having second thoughts.

But if Freedom Caucus members actually vote to block the budget, and thus hold up a repeal of Obamacare, they run the risk of angering Trump.

One caucus member said the group realizes they’re playing with fire by potentially going against leadership and even Trump. But they think GOP leadership should give them more details on how they intend to proceed.

“If you’re going to vote on that vehicle [the budget that includes Obamacare repeal instructions], we want to know what’s in the vehicle,” said Rep. Dave Brat (R-Va.) on Monday night. “So that’s what we’re all waiting for: what are the terms of the replacement? Or the repeal? What all is going to be in there? Are they’re going to be replacements in the repeal? We just want to know, before we move ahead on the vehicle, what’s going to be in it.”