WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is looking to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson and is hopeful for a possible vote this week.
It’s not the first time Greene has threatened the speaker’s seat, as she introduced the motion to vacate, as it’s known, last month.
Yet, Greene has declined to force a vote on the resolution. With a House schedule free of must-pass bills this week, a fight over Johnson’s job could come soon.
Johnson allows foreign aid bill
Greene and some other GOP lawmakers have been frustrated with Johnson, especially after he allowed a $95 billion foreign aid bill to pass last week.
President Joe Biden last week signed the legislation, which includes about $61 billion for Ukraine’s war effort against Russia. Most of that spending was to rebuild stockpiles of domestic weapons and supplies, and a significant portion of the aid set to go directly to the Ukrainian government will in the form of a loan.
Johnson’s decision to back down after a weekslong standoff with Democrats and pass the foreign aid bill has earned him bipartisan praise.
Whether Johnson hangs on to his speakership may come down to whether House Democrats save him.
Former President Donald Trump also backed Johnson, putting any Republican who is considering supporting Greene’s ouster effort in a difficult position of going against the most popular figure in the party.
Greene fed up with Johnson
Greene accused Johnson of betraying Republicans for putting tens of billions of dollars in Ukraine aid up for a vote. She believes that money should go to protecting the U.S.-Mexico border.
Since she filed the motion to vacate the chair, Greene has received support from two other Republicans.
“Johnson will do whatever Biden/Schumer want in order to keep the speaker’s gavel in his hand, but he has completely sold out the Republican voters who gave us the majority. His days as speaker are numbered,” Greene posted to social media.
Democrats rally behind Johnson
In a twist, some House Democrats, including Florida Rep. Jared Moskowitz, have said they may vote against Greene’s motion.
“Well, I mean, look, obviously we’ll wait for our Leader Jeffries to figure out that solution,” Moskowitz said during an interview on MSNBC’s “The Weekend.” “The idea of letting (Greene) sit in the people’s House and the well of Congress, giving a speech, removing any speaker and having that powerful moment, there is just no way Democrats are going to let her do that. I’m not going to let her do that. We won’t even let her name a post office. We’re not going to let her take out the speaker.”
Moskowitz expects Democrats to take their cue from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, with more discussions and closed-door talks on how to proceed with the possible vote happening this week.
The Hill contributed to this report.
