Right-wing lawmakers are on the rise Their threats of removal Speaker Mike Johnson stepped down from his role following a push from Johnson's supporters It should make it difficult to oust him from the post of Speaker.
CNN and other outlets reported Thursday morning that Johnson is being pressured by his constituents to raise the threshold needed to trigger impeachment proceedings against the speaker, according to multiple GOP sources — a move that would help stabilize the Louisiana Republican Party. Foreign aid bills can be passed Still keep his job without having to rely on Democrats to bail him out. Currently, any member can force a vote on that motion — part of a deal brokered by Kevin McCarthy as Speaker last year.
The suggestion sparked another round of anger among conservative lawmakers who are unhappy with the speaker over his proposed package of aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. The effort to oust Johnson, led by Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green, has been ongoing for weeks, and a proposal to change the rules for ousting the speaker has fueled intense speculation about Johnson's future.
It is unclear what Johnson will do, but members believe he is considering a change to a process known as a motion to vacate the chair, which would be a significant move by Johnson.
In recent days, House Republicans have privately encouraged Johnson to insert the provision into the text of the foreign aid bills.
The House is done with floor action for the day, meaning that a motion to expel Greene-Johnson can only be made on Friday. If Green makes that decision, the House will have two legislative days to consider it. A vote to impeach Johnson would require a majority to pass.
The governing body must decide how to deal with this problem. A motion to move — or kill — may be put to the first vote. That too would require only a simple majority to succeed.
Johnson was first reported to be pushing to raise the threshold By Punchbowl News.
There was tension in the council on Thursday morning. At one point, Johnson was surrounded on the House floor by several far-right lawmakers in a heated debate. Johnson was essentially pinned to the back wall of the House floor with members on all sides of him, with the speaker constantly turning his head and responding to members speaking to him.
The committee asked Johnson that he would not raise the threshold for a motion to vacate and the speaker would not commit, which angered many lawmakers, with some even saying it was their red line. Forward him.
“We informed him that any attempt to change the threshold of the movement would trigger a movement to vacate,” GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, who participated in the conversation, told CNN.
GOP Rep. Derrick Van Orton waded into the 20-minute heated floor conversation that was underway and dared his right-wing colleagues to move to oust Johnson, even calling Getz “dubby.”
A GOP lawmaker who participated in the conversation with Johnson, who spoke on condition of anonymity to speak freely, said Van Orten “threatened everyone to come forward and evacuate.”
The GOP lawmaker described Johnson as “very frustrated.”
Green warned the speaker against trying to change the threshold and refused to rule out a move to remove him on Thursday.
“Mike Johnson owes it to our entire convention, and if he wants to change the motion to leave, he needs to come before the Republican convention that elected him and tell us his intentions and tell us what this rule changes to,” Greene told CNN's Manu Raju.
“It's unprecedented. It's never happened in history, it's absolutely wrong. He owes it to our convention, and he owes it to the Republicans to respond,” he added.
In addition to debating the motion to leave the floor, lawmakers said they tried to persuade Johnson to change his course on foreign aid bills, but the speaker refused.
Conservative Rep. Anna Paulina Luna told Johnson on Wednesday night that she was suggesting he take a step back because he was trying to push a supplemental package against the wishes of hardliners. Luna said the majority could be lost to Republicans.
“I think a bigger issue at hand, though, is why the speaker is coming out with a message that contradicts what happened a few months ago,” he said.
The House Rules Committee meets Thursday morning to consider foreign aid bills. The text of the rule will be released after the committee approves it, which is expected later in the day.
That committee will need Democrats to pass the vote and advance the administration, as the House Democratic caucus is still weighing how to proceed with Johnson's work on Ukraine, Israel and a crucial three-part aid package. Taiwan hangs in the balance.
Democrats are still divided on the question, with some arguing that the party needs to overcome the bitter partisanship that has characterized this Congress to deliver critical aid to Ukraine, while others argue that Republicans should pass their own rules.
“I mean, it's definitely another layer,” said the Democratic representative. Dan Gildy told CNN, “It's a ridiculous rule, and we know it, and you know at this point whether it's doing the right thing or not. The global security challenge is another question of whether we should try to free them from their politics.”
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Washington state Democrat, said she would not support the proposal to vacate the Republican administration, regardless of whether there were changes.
“I mean, I think they should pass the regime on their own, but I thought from the beginning that Kevin McCarthy should never have agreed to that,” Jayapal said. “He sold his soul early on, and he thought he could control everyone.”
Representative Mike Quigley, a Democrat, said he supported the ruling and said he would consider supporting the impeachment motion if there was a change in how it worked.
“I think underperformance is everybody's problem. I'm open to whatever it takes for us to be efficient,” Quigley said.
Representative Jared Moskowitz, a Democrat, said leadership should weigh in before deciding whether to support such a change.
One thing hanging over the debates is that many Democrats see Johnson as a more honest broker than McCarthy. Although they disagree with him on many issues, they also believe that he has been a fair partner in the crucial moment of government funding and now providing this aid to Ukraine.
This story has been updated with additional updates.
CNN's Haley Talbot contributed to this report.
