Less than three months after being elected to the leadership position, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is facing backlash from his own party that could result in the same fate of his predecessor.
Last month, members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus publicly called on Johnson to eschew a continuing resolution in favor of a long-term budget that included spending cuts and border security funding.
When he reached a deal with Democrats that did not meet their expectations, some House Republicans reacted harshly — including Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), who suggested that he might trigger a “motion to vacate” vote to remove the speaker from his post.
The same move was used by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) last year.
“I’m leaving it on the table,” Roy said in a recent BlazeTV interview. “I’m not going to say I’m going to file it tomorrow night. I’m not saying I’m not going to file it tomorrow. I think the speaker needs to know that we’re angry about it.”
The Texas Republican, who opposed the push to remove McCarthy, expressed his displeasure with the “gimmicks” used to reach what he described as a misleading topline budget number of $1.59 trillion but acknowledged that negotiations are ongoing and he might still be pleasantly surprised by the results.
Two deadlines are coming up by which a budget deal must be in place to avoid a government shutdown.
“If they totally botch it [and] we get no policy reforms and we’re spending $1.66 trillion, I don’t know why we would keep him as speaker,” Roy continued.
🚨Caught up with CHIP ROY in Iowa on his MOTION TO VACATE comments:
“Speaker Johnson is doing all the same stupid crap that we opposed.” pic.twitter.com/D2I8iXHS1o— Aishah Hasnie (@aishahhasnie) January 9, 2024
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) was another voice of opposition to the Johnson-backed budget framework, as evidenced in a social media post on Sunday.
“I am a NO to the Johnson-Schumer budget deal,” she wrote. “This $1.6 Trillion dollar budget agreement does nothing to secure the border, stop the invasion, or stop the weaponized government targeting [President Joe] Biden’s political enemies and innocent Americans. So much for the power of the purse.”
The full House Freedom Caucus also weighed in on social media, asserting: “It’s even worse than we thought. Don’t believe the spin. Once you break through typical Washington math, the true total programmatic spending level is $1.658 trillion — not $1.59 trillion. This is a total failure.”
