House tables Marjorie Taylor Greene's effort to oust Mike Johnson as speaker
The move comes after Greene met with Johnson and her fellow supporter Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie for two days this week.
The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to table Georgia firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's petition to remove Mike Johnson on Wednesday.
Greene started the clock to vote on removing Johnson on Wednesday afternoon, giving the House two days to vote on her motion-to-vacate. But it was tabled in a bipartisan 359-43 vote, according to C-SPAN. The vote against tabling it was supported by 11 Republicans, including Greene.
The vote comes after Greene met with Johnson and her fellow supporter Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie for two days this week. It is the second effort to remove a House speaker in seven months, after the House removed former Speaker Kevin McCarthy late last year.
The move comes after Greene laid out some demands for Johnson in order to avoid the vote, which included a promise not to pass any more aid to Ukraine, a vow to only bring bills to the floor that have the support of the majority of House Republicans, and the imposition of a one percent budget cut across all agencies if there is no spending deal for fiscal year 2025 by Sept. 30.
Greene previously claimed that the "ball was in Mike Johnson's court," after the two meetings on Monday and Tuesday. But Massie encouraged Johnson to decide quickly on whether to meet the duo's demands, because they would not be going away.
Only Massie, and Arizona Republican Rep. Paul Gosar have expressed support for Greene's effort to remove Johnson so far. But Ohio GOP Rep. Warren Davidson said he would vote against the motion to table. The threat to Johnson's speakership comes after he gathered enough support to pass three major foreign aid bills, which passed with the help of Democrats.