Amash cut from House Budget Committee

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - Rep. Justin Amash (R-Grand Rapids) has been removed from the U.S. House of Representatives Budget Committee, according to a D.C. news outlet.

Amash was one of four Republicans removed from committees by Speaker John Boehner in what congressional news source CQ Roll Call called a "clamping down" on the "fractious conference."

Also removed from the Budget Committee was Rep. Tim Huelskamp of Kansas, Roll Call reported. Reps. David Schweikert of Arizona and Walter Jones of North Carolina lost their seats on the Financial Services Committee.

The representatives were removed from their respective committees mostly because, according to Roll Call, they refused to vote with the rest of their party -- something the GOP won't tolerate so close to the fiscal cliff.

Amash, for example, thought Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan's budget should have cut spending faster and refused to vote for it, according to Roll Call. He also voted against a resolution that extended funding of the government through March.

The purge was decided by the GOP Steering Committee, which reportedly reviewed how often lawmakers voted with GOP leadership.