Marjorie Taylor Greene’s attempt to impeach President Mike Johnson failed miserably, with only 43 House members voting to move it forward.
A vote to “introduce” or delete, the motion succeeded 359 to 43, with only 11 Republicans voting to move forward with the president’s ouster.
Only thirty-two Democrats voted against the effort to advance the motion, a spectacular reversal from months ago when all Democrats voted along with eight Republicans to oust Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
The Georgia Republican was greeted with boos and shocked looks when she introduced her motion during Wednesday’s votes.
GOP members accused her of throwing a “tantrum” and seeking attention when she brought her eviction motion to the House floor Wednesday night.
The Georgia lawmaker has pressed ahead with his attempt to unseat Johnson, although he has virtually no support.
She filed her motion to deprive him Wednesday night, prompting a frantic vote on whether to fire him, which must occur within two legislative days.
The move came after more than four hours of meetings this week between Greene and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and the speaker, where they laid out a list of demands for Speaker Mike Johnson.
“President Johnson has failed to live up to a single one of his self-imposed principles,” Greene said.
Republicans are increasingly frustrated with Greene and her efforts to throw the House back into chaos, as happened after the ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
“Times like this need a bar in this place,” Rep. Dave Joyce, R-Ohio, murmured as he left the House chamber.
“Moscow’s Marjorie has clearly gone crazy, perhaps as a result of a space laser,” said Rep. Mike Lawler, RN.Y.
Asked if he thought Greene should be punished, Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-D., said, “One dumpster fire at a time.”
In the House, Greene criticized the two-part spending bill that funded the government for fiscal year 2024, a bill that reauthorized the warrantless FISA spy tool and a foreign aid package that did not include border security.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene introduced her privileged motion to impeach Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday night, setting off a frantic vote on whether or not to fire him within two legislative days.
House members collectively groaned as MTG filed its eviction motion.
Johnson spearheaded a $95 billion foreign policy bill that passed last month with support from Democrats and authorized nearly $61 billion for Ukraine, along with billions for Israel and Taiwan.
He has been forced to rely on support from Democrats while presiding over a slim one-vote majority in the House, and it is a challenge to get the fractious Republican conference into line.
‘Excuses like ‘this is how we should govern’ and divided government are pathetic, weak and unacceptable. “Even with our slim Republican majority, we could have at least secured the border,” Greene said.
Greene accused Johnson of “aiding and abetting Democrats” to “destroy our country,” as Democrats booed her and Johnson shook hands and smiled at Republicans who supported him.
Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, left, and Thomas Massie, second from right, have laid out a list of demands for President Mike Johnson, and are now holding off on their move to impeach him.
A day earlier, Greene and Massie said they would give Johnson some time to respond to their demands.
Those demands included “not one more cent for Ukraine,” and adhering to the so-called “Hastert Rule,” which means not bringing up legislation that does not have the support of a majority of Republicans.
And another is to defund special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into former President Donald Trump for “inciting” the Jan. 6 riot and his alleged mishandling of classified documents, something the Democratic-led Senate and House Blanca would never accept.
‘You can’t make things happen instantly. And we are all aware of it and understand it. So now the ball is in his court and he’s supposed to come to us, hopefully soon,” Greene said.
If Congress can’t pass all 12 spending bills to fund the government in fiscal year 2025 by Sept. 30, Greene and Massie want a continuing resolution to push the deadline back to the November election with an automatic cut of one percent.
“He joined the Democrats to get FISA without a warrant, to get the minibus approved and to get funding for Ukraine,” Massie said. “It’s time for me to come home.”
Greene, Massie and Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., signed a motion to override it, but did not make the “privileged” motion that would force a vote within two legislative days.
Democrats have already said they would vote to introduce – or override – the motion, essentially taking the air out of the Republican trio’s threat.
Still, Johnson spent about two hours on Monday and again on Tuesday in his office with his biggest Republican antagonist, Greene.
Some Republicans have questioned why he would negotiate with Greene.
“It’s not a negotiation,” he insisted. ‘Everyone knows that I have long discussions, detailed discussions, daily with members from across the conference.
Greene has found herself increasingly at odds with former President Donald Trump in her crusade against Johnson. Trump has publicly supported the speaker and noted the difficulties of operating with a one-vote majority.
Recent reports came to light about a phone call in which Trump told Greene to back off the overthrow. Greene declined to share details about whether the former president supports his motion.
Reporters surround MTG and Massie to see if they will try to oust President Johnson
Greene, R-Ga., along with Massie, R-Kentucky, are insisting that the speaker commit to no longer funding Ukraine.
‘I have to tell you that I love President Trump. My conversations with him are fantastic. And I repeat, I am not going to go into details. You want to know why I don’t feel insecure about that. And I don’t have to go into details here with you.
Just a few days ago she was determined to present her motion to evict the “privileged” this week, a measure that would force a vote in the House on whether or not to keep Johnson as president within two legislative days.
Asked if she would still activate the motion, Greene said, “That’s up to Mike Johnson.”
Massie said they didn’t give Johnson a “timeline” to agree to their demands, but it’s pretty short.”
“Next week I will file this motion to quash,” Greene declared last week.
‘Absolutely call him. “I can’t wait to see Democrats go out and support a Republican president and have to come home for their primary,” he scoffed a day after Democrats said they would vote against Green’s motion to oust the president. deflating his intent.
