Conservative Republican Reps. Tim Huelskamp of Kansas and Justin Amash of Michigan hit back at Republican leadership on Tuesday, following their Monday removal from prominent committees, calling the move “petty” and “vindictive,” and accusing Speaker of the House John Boehner and his deputies of silencing independent conservative voices in preparation to steamroll a tax hike through Congress.

Huelskamp — who was removed from the Agriculture and Budget Committees — released a video on Friday declaring his intention to not vote for any tax increases and received notice of his removal on Monday, “one business day” later.

“I think there’s going to be an attempt to pass a tax increase through the House, in exchange for what?” he told a group of reporters at the Heritage Foundation Tuesday afternoon. “This president doesn’t want to do entitlement reform, doesn’t want to cut spending… I think it makes very clear to conservatives that you’re about to get run over.”

The decision, he said, was “all behind closed doors” and was presented to him as based on a secret scorecard of “what was considered the right vote.”

Libertarian star Amash suggested that a willingness to put defense cuts on the table was behind his and Huelskamp’s removal from the Budget Committee, as well as Arizona Rep.  David Schweikert and North Carolina Rep. Walter Jones’ removal from the Financial Services Committee.

“I can tell you that to different degrees, Tim Huelskamp and even Walter Jones have taken positions on military spending that are a little more open to compromise on that issue — working with Democrats to try and find ways to reduce spending… I don’t know if that’s the common thread for sure, but it’s certainly true about all of us that we’re more open to that.”

“I think they [Republican leaders] are willing to raise taxes to avoid any defense cuts,” he charged, “and I think they’re willing to take any deals, even bad ones, to avoid defense cuts.”

Amash clarified that he is not for massive slashes in defense, but said that all things need to be considered in order to achieve a compromise in negotiations with Democrats.
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2012/12/04/purged-conservative-reps-boehner-planning-to-run-over-conservatives-vote-for-tax-hike/#ixzz2EBbB1oFp