During the presidential election campaign Paul Ryan stated that he could not support The Donald after the video illustrating his behavior towards women was made public. Trump quickly brought Ryan back on his side. All he had to do was make a negative tweet about Ryan and Trump's base let Ryan know what the score was. He needed Trump's support to get reelected.
The Freedom Caucus voted against the Ryan/Trump healthcare bill. That made it impossible to get enough Republican votes to pass the bill. Unlike Ryan, who lives in a competitive district, the members of the Freedom Caucus do not have to worry about a negative Trump tweet. Their districts have been gerrymandered so that they do not have to worry about getting reelected or facing a more conservative opponent in a GOP primary. For example, the head of the Freedom Caucus faced no opposition in his election campaign. The conservative Democrat who represented the district chose not to run against the Republican after his district was gerrymandered. The liberals in Ashville, who elected the Democrat, were splint into two districts to dilute their power. The district was made ultra conservative through gerrymandering. Control or the state legislatures, which have the power to redraw district lines, have made the majority of House districts noncompetitive. There are no seats in the House more immune from competition than the seats held by members of the Freedom Caucus. Neither Ryan, who is the Speaker of the House, or President Trump have the power to prevent the Freedom Caucus from blocking the passage of bills that don't meet the rigid beliefs that unite its members. That is why Trump made an effort to bring Democrats over to his side so that a bill could be passed. Republican control of the House makes it possible to block Democratic initiatives but it does not enable the GOP to pass bills that are not supported by the Freedom Caucus.
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