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Marjorie Taylor Greene will have a second meeting with Speaker Mike Johnson this afternoon as she threatens to force a House vote to oust the GOP leader.
The Georgia Republican vowed last week to force a vote to remove Mr Johnson from his role as Speaker. If Ms Greene triggers a privileged motion, the House will be forced to vote within 48 hours.
The first meeting on Monday afternoon lasted more than an hour. Afterwards, Ms Greene told reporters they would meet again on Tuesday.
Ms Greene is demanding that Mr Johnson guarantee he will not pass more aid for Ukraine and commit to defunding Special Counsel Jack Smith’s probes into former president Donald Trump, Punchbowl News reports.
Mr Smith’s investigations into Mr Trump include the classified documents case and the 6 January 2021 riots probe.
However, these asks are largely symbolic, given other members of the House, the US Senate and President Joe Biden would likely block each move.
Meanwhile, the speaker told Fox News he thinks he can “get everyone on the same page” after Monday’s meeting. He also noted he spoke to the former president this week.
What is a motion to vacate?
Marjorie Taylor Greene plans to call a motion to vacate against Speaker Mike Johnson. If Ms Greene triggers a “privileged motion” on her motion to vacate, the House will be forced to vote within 48 hours on his removal.
Read more about how a motion to vacate works — and how the process was used to oust the last Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy:
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 14:00
Representative Thomas Massie backs vow to vote on Mike Johnson ouster
Representative Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, is standing beside Marjorie Taylor Greene and her call to vote on ousting Speaker Mike Johnson this week.
“This week we vote on whether Mike Johnson should remain as Speaker,” Mr Massie wrote on X. “If you’re happy with what he’s done this year and if you’re looking forward to what he will do the remainder of the year, you should join the Democrat leader Hakeem Jeffries in supporting Mike Johnson.”
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 12:00
ICYMI: What is ‘MUGA,’ and why is Marjorie Taylor Greene using the acronym?
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene says her fellow representatives will need to choose between “MAGA” or “MUGA” as her attempt to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson moves ahead.
On Wednesday, the right-wing Georgia firebrand, accompanied by fellow right-wing Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky, said she will call a privileged motion next week that would trigger an automatic vote within 48 hours over Johnson’s removal.
Ms Greene and Mr Massie criticised Mr Johnson’s reliance on Democrats to pass everything from spending bills to reauthorisation of surveillance legislation and aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. They blasted work between Mr Johnson and Mr Jeffries as a culmination of the “uniparty.””
Ms Greene then brandished a hat that said “MUGA.”
“The uniparty is ‘Make Ukraine Great Again,’” she said. “The uniparty is about funding every single foreign war. They think this is the business model that needs to be done.”
Read more:
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 11:00
ANALYSIS: Marjorie Taylor Greene’s exercise in vanity has failed — spectacularly
Last Tuesday should have been the perfect day for Marjorie Taylor Greene to trigger her motion to vacate. It had been more than a week since the House had voted on the foreign aid package that provided assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. That vote allowed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to blast isolationists in the Republican party and gloat at their diminished power. MTG was poised to bite back.
Instead, Democrats threw House Speaker Mike Johnson a lifeline. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Democratic Whip Katherine Clark and Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar all said they would join in a motion to table Greene’s motion, specifically citing the right-wing conspiracy theorist from Georgia as their reason for doing so.
Read more analysis from Eric Garcia, Washington, DC Bureau Chief for The Independent:
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 09:00
ICYMI: Democrats say they would save Republican speaker amid possible effort to oust him
Read more from Gustaf Kilander and Eric Garcia:
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 07:00
ICYMI: Marjorie Taylor Greene threatens to trigger motion to vacate Mike Johnson
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 05:01
ICYMI: Greene faces some GOP opposition to her ousting effort
Some GOP Congressmembers condemned Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene’s efforts to oust Speaker Mike Johnson.
Representative Nancy Mace, a Republican from South Carolina, said Ms Greene won’t succeed.
“We need to get our act together and come together for the betterment of our country...I don’t know why she’s doing this because the votes aren’t there,” Ms Mace said of her colleague on Monday morning.
Democratic leadership also said last week they would vote to save Mr Johnson.
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 04:00
ICYMI: Republican lawmaker doesn’t mince his words about Marjorie Taylor Greene: ‘She is a total waste of time’
Republican Senator Thom Tillis called one of his House colleagues a “waste of time”, a bad leader, and a threat to the future of the GOP, according to a recent report.
“I think she’s uninformed, she is a total waste of time,” Mr Tillis says on the recording. “She is a horrible leader. She is dragging our brand down. She – not the Democrats – [is] the biggest risk to us getting back to a majority.”
Ms Greene has frustrated some members of her party by crusading against Mike Johnson, the current speaker of the House. Mr Johnson was installed after Congressman Matt Gaetz led a successful, though extremely unpopular campaign to remove Kevin McCarthy, then-speaker of the House.
Read on:
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 03:00
Why is Marjorie Taylor Greene calling to oust Speaker Mike Johnson?
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, vowed to trigger a vote on Speaker Mike Johnson’s removal this week.
Ms Greene’s efforts to remove the Speaker are supported by Representative Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky. The pair have criticised Mr Johnson’s reliance on and willingness to work with Democrats on passing several bills, including the supplemental foreign aid legislation for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
Read more about Ms Greene’s gripes with Mr Johnson from The Independent’s Washington, DC Bureau Chief, Eric Garcia:
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 02:00
WATCH: GOP Representative Nancy Mace condemns Marjorie Taylor Greene’s efforts to oust Speaker Johnson
Katie Hawkinson7 May 2024 01:00
