As the meeting started at 5:30 p.m., aides were confident that members would reject Goodlatte's proposal once Ryan and McCarthy weighed in against it. That did not happen. Goodlatte was backed by a chorus of rank-and-file lawmakers - many of whom had been targeted by OCE probes or feared they might be next - who were emboldened to make changes. The measure passed handily, 119 to 74. Dozens of other members were absent because they were not yet in Washington.