Michael McCaul Stands Apart in the House GOP. But He Has the Speaker’s Ear.

“I think of my role as a foreign policy, national security adviser to the speaker,” the Texas Republican told NOTUS.

Michael McCaul
“I think America needs to lead the free world and not abandon our allies now,” Rep. Michael McCaul told NOTUS. Kevin Wolf/AP

Rep. Michael McCaul doesn’t share many views on foreign policy with former President Donald Trump or the growing Trump-aligned faction of the GOP conference. But he feels he has the ear of House Speaker Mike Johnson, and he hopes to use it to avoid what he fears could be another world war.

“I think of my role as a foreign policy, national security adviser to the speaker,” he said in an interview with NOTUS this week. “And he leans on that. I think I can provide him with the right judgment.”

At a time when many of his close friends have decided to retire, McCaul has shown no signs of wanting out of Washington. Part of the explanation is his influence has never been larger, especially with wars in Ukraine and Gaza and a relatively inexperienced speaker.