WASHINGTON — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said Wednesday she will force a vote next week to recall House Speaker Mike Johnson, daring Democrats and the president’s GOP allies to intervene and save his job.
Wearing a red “MAGA” hat, Greene accused Johnson of betraying the Republican Party and going against conservative wishes on government funding laws, approving aid to Ukraine and reauthorizing the FISA surveillance program without new warrant requirements, among other issues. .
“So next week, I’m going to call this motion to vacate. I will definitely call,” Greene said at a press conference outside the Capitol. “I can’t wait to see Democrats go out and support a Republican president and have to go home to the primaries and run for Congress again.”
His new threat against Johnson comes just one day after Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and his Democratic leadership team issued a rare statement announcing that Democrats would unite to protect Johnson by voting to “introduce” or override a Greene motion to remove the President of the Chamber. to promote bipartisan cooperation and a return to normalcy.
“House Democrats have pushed back aggressively against MAGA extremism. We will continue to do just that. At this time, after our national security work is complete, the time has come to turn the page on this chapter of pro-Putin Republican obstruction.” Democratic leaders said in their statement Tuesday.
“We will vote to introduce Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene’s motion to vacate her seat. If she invokes the motion, she will not succeed,” they said.
Even some of Johnson’s other conservative critics have opposed Greene’s push to depose Johnson and say it will go nowhere. She has just two co-sponsors on her resolution.
Moments after Greene’s press conference, Johnson released a terse statement: “This motion is wrong for the Republican Conference, wrong for the institution and wrong for the country.”
Greene has been threatening action against the president for months, warning him not to pass on emergency foreign aid to Ukraine as thousands of migrants cross the southern border. But last month, Johnson, after negotiating with the White House, approved a $95 billion national security package that included aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, along with a potential ban on the social media app TikTok. President Joe Biden quickly signed the law into law.
“Now we have Hakeem Jeffries and the Democrats coming, embracing Mike Johnson with a warm hug and a big, wet, sloppy kiss. And they’re ready — they’ve endorsed him, they’re ready to support him as speaker of the House,” Greene said. “They want to keep going, keep the band together. Why? Because Mike Johnson is giving them everything they want.”
Greene labeled Johnson a member of the “uniparty,” a term far-right Republicans use to disparage Republicans who work with Democrats to pass bipartisan measures.
The dynamic was very different under Johnson’s predecessor, Kevin McCarthy. Last fall, Democrats decided to join just eight House conservatives in making McCarthy the first president in history to be removed by a midterm congressional vote.
If Democrats had decided to do the same thing this time, Greene would have had enough Republican support to unseat Johnson, given the GOP’s slim two-seat advantage. Democrats’ decision to support Johnson undermines Greene’s efforts while giving her more political ammunition against the House speaker and his allies.
Both Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., signed on to Greene’s motion. On Wednesday, Massie stood by Greene and defended her against accusations that she was not behaving like a serious lawmaker.
“She’s the most serious representative here,” Massie said.
Kyle Stewart It is Rebecca Kaplan contributed.
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
