House rejects Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s effort to oust Speaker Mike Johnson, but chaos lingers

WASHINGTON — Hardline Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tried and failed in a brazen attempt to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson, but the resounding rejection by Republicans and Democrats fed up with the unrest does not guarantee an end to the chaos of the Republican Party.

Greene, one of Donald Trump’s biggest supporters in Congress, stood on the floor of the House of Representatives late Wednesday and read out a long list of “transgressions” she said Johnson had committed as speaker, from adopting a national $95 billion security package with aid to Ukraine to its dependence on Democrats to wield power.

Colleagues booed in protest. But Greene continued, criticizing Johnson’s leadership as “pathetic, weak and unacceptable.”

After Greene triggered the vote on her motion to remove the Republican chairman from office, Republican Majority Leader Steve Scalise responded quickly by first calling for a vote to table the proposal.

An overwhelming majority, 359-43, kept Johnson in office for the time being.

“As I have said from the beginning, and I have made it clear here every day, I intend to do my job,” Johnson said afterward. “And I let the chips fall where they may. In my eyes, that is leadership.”

It’s the second time in just a few months that Republicans have tried to oust their own president, an unprecedented level of unrest in the party and a move rarely seen in US history.

While the outcome temporarily calms the latest source of disruption in the House of Representatives, the vote tally shows the strengths but also the grim limits of Johnson’s grip on the gavel, and the risks that lie ahead for any Republican who tries to lead the Republican Party.

Without Democratic help, Johnson would certainly have seen a bleaker outcome. All told, 11 Republicans voted to continue Greene’s efforts, more than it took to oust then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy last fall, a first in American history.

But by relying on Democrats’ support, Johnson risks further criticism that he is not sufficiently loyal to the party.

And the threat remains: any lawmaker can make the motion to fire the speaker.

Even though Trump has given the necessary support to Johnson at crucial moments, it is not profitable in the future. The former president idly warned about the possible removal of the chairman as voting got underway.

“At some point that may very well be the case, but now is not the time,” Trump said on social media.

Trump also made clear that he still valued Greene, perhaps his biggest ally in the House of Representatives, even as he rejected her proposal. “I absolutely love Marjorie Taylor Greene,” he said as he urged Republicans to introduce her motion.

As Greene continued the snap vote, Republican lawmakers filtered toward Johnson, patting him on the back and grabbing his shoulder to assure him of their support.

The Georgia Republican had promised weeks ago that she would force a vote on the motion to fire the Republican chairman if he dared to bring up the foreign aid package for Ukraine, which was overwhelmingly approved late last month and in the law was signed.

But in recent days it appeared her efforts had cooled, as she and Johnson met repeatedly for a possible resolution.

Louisiana’s Johnson marched further, saying he was willing to take the risk of approving foreign aid because he believed it was important for the U.S. to support Ukraine against Russian invasion, explaining that he was working on the “good side of history’.

Most unusually, the push from Democrats led by Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York showed the exhaustion in Congress over the far-right antics. Jeffries and his leadership team had said it was time to “turn the page” on the Republican Party’s turmoil and vote to advance Greene’s resolution — ensuring Johnson’s job is preserved for now stays.

“Our decision to stop Marjorie Taylor Greene from plunging the country into further chaos is rooted in our commitment to solving problems,” Jeffries said after the vote.

But Democrats have also made clear that their help was just for the moment, and not a promise of a lasting partnership for Johnson’s survival.

Asked about a future motion to remove the speaker, Jeffries said, “I haven’t thought about it yet.”

The move now carries its own political risks for Greene, a high-profile provocateur who has risen to the forefront of the party with her own massive following and close ties to Trump.

Greene was determined to force her colleagues to make their votes public, putting them in the politically awkward position of supporting the speaker and being seen as joining forces with Democrats to save him.

“I’m proud of what I did today,” Greene said afterward on the steps of the Capitol.

As reporters and camera crews circled around Greene and ally Thomas Massie, R-Ky. gathered, a group of other Republicans gathered on the stairs to divert attention from her and make their own opinions known.

Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., said of those who tried to remove the speaker: “They are pretty good at getting attention, but they are not recognized for their ability to get things done.”

He said if they continue to push to oust the speaker, “I think you can expect more of the same: failure.”

Reps. Carlos Giménez, a Republican from Florida, said of Greene: “She does not represent the Republican Party. I’m tired of this being the face or voice of the party and getting attention. That’s all she wants, attention.”

Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., called for Greene and Massie to be punished for their actions.

Had Democrats not taken the unusual step of helping, the vote would most likely have ended differently for Johnson, who has one of the smallest majorities in the House of Representatives in modern times, with no votes to spare.

Last year, the House was thrown into chaos when eight Republicans voted to remove McCarthy from the speaker’s office and Democrats refused to help save him.

McCarthy’s ouster resulted in a nearly month-long search for a new Republican leader, bringing the chamber to a standstill in an episode Republicans wanted to avoid ahead of the November election.

___

Associated Press writers Stephen Groves, Mary Clare Jalonick, Michelle Price and Farnoush Amiri contributed to this report.