That IS a UNDER STATMENT……
Conservative Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) is joining Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) in her efforts to oust Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) after the Louisiana Republican announced plans to bring multiple foreign aid bills to the floor.
Why it matters: Johnson’s speakership is in the most precarious place its been since taking over the gavel, coming under fire from conservatives over his handling of an array of policy issues.
- Massie told the room he feels Johnson should resign and asserted he would co-sponser the motion to vacate.
- Greene for weeks has threatened to force a vote on his ouster over Ukraine aid, doubling down despite former President Trump asserting he stands with Johnson.
Massie’s comments were met with boos from the majority of the conference, two members confirmed.
- “It’s a clusterf**k,” one member said, adding “Johnson got a round of applause.”
- “We are screwed,” another member told Axios.
The big picture: Members have asserted that they don’t want additional chaos with another ouster, but with the slim majority Johnson faces some of his most difficult hurdles yet.
- Some Democrats have said they will bail Johnson out on the floor so he does not meet a similar fate to his predecessor, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) took the extraordinary step this morning of publicly announcing that he was “not resigning” after a second conservative GOP hardliner called for his ouster in a closed House Republican Conference meeting, Punchbowl Newsreports.
Said Johnson: “I am not resigning. And it is, in my view, an absurd notion that someone would bring a vacate motion when we are simply here trying to do our jobs. It is not helpful to the cause, it is not helpful to the country, it does not help the House Republicans advance our agenda, which is in the best interest of the American people here — a secure border, sound governance – and it’s not helpful to the unity that we have in the body.”
“But let’s be clear — It’s not great when a speaker has to go out and publicly declare that he’s not resigning just 174 days into his tenure.”
House Democrats are warning Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) that not including humanitarian aid in his foreign aid package could poison it for their side, Axios reports.
Said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.): “There is no circumstance that we could support anything that does not include humanitarian aid.”
Another Republican House member qwon’t seek re-election in November….
Rep. Jake LaTurner (R-Kan.) announced Thursday he’ll finish his current term in the House but won’t run for reelection this fall.
“The busy schedule of serving in and running for Congress has taken a toll,” he said in a statement. “The unrepeatable season of life we are in, where our kids are still young and at home, is something I want to be more present for.”….
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