Donald Trump and Freedom Caucus member Chip Roy (R-TX) are not exactly buddy-buddy. After the Jan. 6 coup attempt, Roy stated that Trump had engaged in "clearly impeachable conduct." During the primaries, he opposed Trump and endorsed Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), which made Trump even angrier with Roy. With the House so closely divided, Trump can't afford to lose Roy's vote, so they have sorta, kinda made up. But Trump did (jokingly?) call Roy a "nasty son of a bitch" recently.
Why the bad blood? Well, Trump wanted Congress to raise the debt ceiling before he took office so he could cut taxes without the painful task of cutting spending and without banging his head on the debt ceiling. Roy blocked that plan. Trump then changed his tune and called Roy "another ambitious guy with no talent engaging in some cheap publicity for himself." Maybe that wasn't so smart, since Roy has not caved at all and is probably capable of bringing multiple other FC members along when he opposes Trump's plans. Unlike Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), who squeals a lot but knows nothing about governing, Roy does. He was formerly a staffer for Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and knows the ins-and-outs of congressional procedure well and knows where the pressure points are. He also speaks the language that conservatives love to hear, so he has his own base.
Roy knows what he wants: Shrink the federal government. That is not Trump's agenda at all. Trump wants to change the government more than shrink it. He doesn't want to abolish many departments. He just wants them to carry out his policies there. Trump doesn't give a rat's ass about the deficit. Roy gives the whole rat.
Trump has crushed previous conservatives, like former representative Bob Good, but Roy has beaten MAGA primary opponents before and he can't be bullied easily. He also doesn't like making deals with the Democrats, so if Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is forced to do that, Roy and friends could make a motion to vacate the chair. In particular, he is against a multi-thousand-page bill that includes tax cuts, immigration, energy, and whatever it takes to get enough Democrats on board to bypass the Freedom Caucus.
In principle, Trump is in favor of cutting spending, which will make Roy happy, but the devil is in the details. No matter what Trump tries to cut, there will be opposition, often from Republicans. With such a small majority, Trump is going to have to master the legislative process if he wants to get anything done. There could be a steep learning curve there. (V)