Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) had her attempt to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) rejected by the House of Representatives last night. But with 43 members of Congress choosing to vote Yes on her proposition, Johnson officially has reason to worry about rising discontent within his own party.
Late Wednesday night, Green stood on the House floor and read out a list of Johnson’s “transgressions,” including his $95 billion foreign aid spending package and his alleged reliance on Democrats to get legislation passed. Greene characterized Johnson’s leadership as “pathetic, weak and unacceptable.”
Members of Congress voted to keep Johnson in Congress by a margin of 359-43. “As I’ve said from the beginning, and I’ve made clear here every day, I intend to do my job,” Johnson said afterward. “And I’ll let the chips fall where they may. In my view, that is leadership.”
Learn the benefits of becoming a Valuetainment Member and subscribe today!
Johnson met with Greene a few times ahead of the motion to vacate in an attempt to smooth things over. While Johnson would have preferred broad Republican support to avoid the optics that he had to rely on Democrats to keep his position, Greene had to worry about a potentially catastrophe should her motion to vacate bring too much bad press on the MAGA Republicans.
“Right now the ball is in Mike Johnson’s court,” Greene said after a meeting. “I am so done with words. For me, it’s all about actions.”
“Look, they’ve been very productive discussions. that’s what I’ll say,” Johnson said. When asked if they were forging deals, he denied it. “It’s not a negotiation,” he said.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), another hard-right Congressman, joined the discussions on Greene’s side. “If his plan is to drag this out so the pressure comes off of this, and to drag it out for weeks or days even, without making some movement in our direction, then he would just be far better off to have this vote and get it behind him,” Massie said.
Perhaps surprisingly, Donald Trump came out against Greene, saying he “absolutely loves” her, but stated it was politically unwise to start a feud within the Republican Party. “if we show DISUNITY, which will be portrayed as CHAOS, it will negatively affect everything!” he wrote on his social media platform Truth Social: “It is my request that Republicans vote for “THE MOTION TO TABLE.””
Shane Devine is a writer covering politics and business for VT and a regular guest on The Unusual Suspects. Follow Shane’s work here.
Add comment