DALLAS — The State Freedom Caucus Network, which has helped establish Freedom Caucuses in 12 state legislatures since late 2021, is focused on building a farm team of vetted conservatives to fight the establishment in Washington.
The network’s president, Andy Roth, told reporters at the foundation’s first summit that when he worked for the Club for Growth for 20 years, his job was to interview candidates for Congress to assess their conservative credentials. More often than not, those candidates were state lawmakers.
Mr. Roth now says those interviews are no longer necessary, thanks to the network.
“We did an obscene amount of research looking into their records and trying to figure out if they were going to ultimately be House Freedom Caucus members in D.C.,” he said. “All of that research is no longer needed, in my opinion.”
He added, “The only question that these groups need to ask these candidates is if you’re in the state legislature, were you a Freedom Caucus member or were you not.”
Many state Freedom Caucus members are coy about any intentions related to running for higher office, saying they are focused on representing their constituents at the state level.
Still, others say that the new Freedom Caucuses across the country are an opportunity for more conservatives to reach higher offices. In Washington, the House Freedom Caucus has roughly 40 members and influences the party’s stance on issues such as spending and immigration.
Arizona state Sen. Justine Wadsack said she did not view Freedom Caucus members as political ladder “climbers” but that their supporters often push them in that direction.
“Many of us are here because we have to be here. It’s not that we want to be here,” she said. “We kind of feel that we have to be here because many of those in our party have not been voting correctly and have not been writing legislation that’s for the people.”
She continued, “I don’t look at us as climbers, but I think if you talk to the people, if you talk to the general public that support us, they want us to move up to governor or Congress because they want us to hold the line in areas where we can have more effect.”
In state legislatures, the Freedom Caucus members are exerting their influence on issues such as limiting the growth of state spending, sometimes clashing with other Republicans who are not part of their network.
Missouri state Sen. Rick Brattin views the network as “a training ground.”
“Hopefully, this is a way to show whoever is running for whatever office … this is how they learn how to govern,” Mr. Brattin said. “This is what we need to be fighting for. Hopefully, we get a new wave of legislators and governors and people who are willing to fight and stand for what is right.”
Louisiana state Sen. Blake Miguez says it is all about being “battle ready” when called upon.
“I see a lot of people, they go on the campaign trail, they say they are something [conservative],” he said. “But they get into a situation with groupthink, and with peer pressure from their colleagues, they just end up, instead of being leaders, going along with the flow.”
He added, “They don’t want to interrupt [and would rather] be polite. Sometimes you find that they thought they were conservative, but they end up being moderate legislators.”
Members of the State Freedom Caucus network ran for Congress this cycle and some, including legislators in South Carolina, came close to winning their primaries, but only one has managed to make it into the general election.
Former Missouri state Sen. Bob Onder, a Republican running in his state’s 3rd Congressional District, joined the Missouri Freedom Caucus as an emeritus member since he was previously a longtime member of the now-defunct Conservative Caucus.
A Freedom Caucus insider said the group is not concerned now about how many of their members will make it to Congress this year, but are more focused now on expanding their statewide influence and building up the numbers of their state caucuses across the country.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
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