House Democrats announced on Tuesday that they would vote to table Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s attempt to remove House GOP Speaker Mike Johnson from his leadership position.
Greene first filed the motion to vacate on March 22 during the latest appropriations fight, and the effort has picked up the support from Republican Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Paul Gosar of Arizona. House Democratic leadership vowed to help save Johnson from Greene’s motion if she moves forward with it after the speaker advanced the foreign aid supplemental last week, according to a press release. (RELATED: Dem Rep Says He Would ‘Table’ Any Motion To Remove Johnson Following Approval Of Ukraine Funding)
“From the very beginning of this Congress, House Democrats have put people over politics and found bipartisan common ground with traditional Republicans in order to deliver real results. At the same time, House Democrats have aggressively pushed back against MAGA extremism. We will continue to do just that,” the statement read. “At this moment, upon completion of our national security work, the time has come to turn the page on this chapter of Pro-Putin Republican obstruction. We will vote to table Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Motion to Vacate the Chair. If she invokes the motion, it will not succeed.”
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) holds a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol following a private visit to the Holocaust Museum, to express contrition for previous remarks about Jewish people, in Washington, U.S. June 14, 2021. (REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein)
The House voted to pass a foreign aid package on April 20 that green-lit $60.8 billion in aid to Ukraine, as well as $24 billion to Israel and $8 billion to Taiwan. The legislation, which subsequently passed the Senate and was signed by President Joe Biden, also included provisions to increase pressure on Iran and China, as well as language that could force ByteDance — the CCP-linked parent company of TikTok — to sell the social media app.
“For months, House Republicans irresponsibly delayed critical security assistance to our democratic allies in Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific, while simultaneously blocking humanitarian assistance to civilians in harm’s way in places like Gaza, Haiti and the Sudan,” the statement read. “Thanks to a bipartisan coalition of Democrats and Republicans, led by President Biden, we were finally able to meet the national security needs of the American people.”
Johnson reacted to the news during a press conference on Tuesday, telling reporters that he did not make a deal with the Democrats.
“I have to do my job. We have to do what we believe to be the right thing. What the country needs right now is a functioning Congress. They need a Congress that works well, works together and does not hamper its own ability to solve these problems,” said Johnson. “We saw what happened with the motion to vacate the last time — Congress was closed for three weeks. No one can afford for that to happen.”
“We need people who are [sic] serious about the job here, to continue to do that job and get it done. So, you know, I have to [sic] do what I believe is right every day and let the chips fall where they may. You’ve heard me say that many times, and will continue to,” Johnson added.
Greene took to social media following the Democrats’ announcement, which she characterized as being the party’s “official endorsement of [Johnson’s] Speakership.”
“If the Democrats want to elect him Speaker (and some Republicans want to support the Democrats’ chosen Speaker), I’ll give them the chance to do it,” Greene wrote on X. “I’m a big believer in recorded votes because putting Congress on record allows every American to see the truth and provides transparency to our votes. Americans deserve to see the Uniparty on full display. I’m about to give them their coming out party!”
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