Ryan is accountable to all House Republicans. The members of the Freedom Caucus are accountable only to the districts that elected them, which are all off-the-charts conservative. These members don't care about the Trump agenda, nor their GOP brethren. They only care about keeping their jobs.

That's part of the shadow side of the House of Representatives. Cadres representing extreme points of view can wield inordinate power. And before somebody says I'm picking on the Republicans, let me confirm that, yes, the Dems are capable of this as well. They just don't happen to be in the majority at the moment.