Chaos engulfs House GOP yet again
Greene files motion to oust Speaker Johnson
Also in today’s special edition of ‘Regular Order’ for March 23, 2024:
Another House Republican to resign early.
Top GOP chair steps aside.
Oh yeah, Congress avoids a shutdown.
HOUSE GOP. Nearly six months after House Republicans were thrown into chaos by a move to oust Speaker Kevin McCarthy, GOP lawmakers are in the same spot again, as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) filed a motion on Friday to get rid of Speaker Mike Johnson. "The current Speaker has shown he cannot stand up to the Democrats," Greene said.
VACATE. Greene did not immediately trigger action on her resolution, meaning it will hang over Speaker Johnson - and all House Republicans - during an Easter break which lasts until April 9. "It's more of a warning shot and a pink slip," Greene said. "It's time for us to go through the process, take our time, and find a new Speaker of the House."
SPENDING. Greene’s move came amid widespread GOP grumbling over a package of government funding bills negotiated by the Speaker. “I filed a Motion to Vacate because it's time the American people have leadership in Congress that will fight for their values and stop funding the left's agenda,” Greene said.
FREEDOM CAUCUS. Even before Greene’s move, conservative Republicans vented their frustration on Friday about the government funding choices made by Johnson. Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) called the minibus spending packages a 'total surrender' by GOP leaders. "I can't defend the Speaker," said Rep. Bob Good (R-VA).
BAYOU STATE. But there was no GOP rush to get on board with Greene's effort. "Marjorie has made a big mistake," said Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA), who defended the Speaker. "To think that one of our Republican colleagues would call for his ouster right now, it's really abhorrent to me."
FRUSTRATION. Still, there is no way to sugarcoat the frustration in the GOP - whether it’s real or misguided. "Some will say that the Republicans are in the majority in the House, but that the Democrats own the Speaker's gavel," said Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN). "When I came here, I thought we had the majority," added Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO).
PARLIAMENTARY NERD NOTE. Greene's decision to forgo an immediate vote to get rid of Johnson has been done before. Back in 2015, then Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) filed a motion to vacate against Speaker John Boehner (R-OH). Meadows never followed through - but the resulting threat led in part to Boehner's resignation.
SUPPORT. I fully expect some Democrats would vote to keep Johnson as Speaker, protecting the House for institutional reasons. But they also would not do it without getting something in return. That something would most likely be a House vote on a Ukraine aid package.
DEMS. "I do not support Speaker Johnson but I will never stand by and let MTG take over the people’s House," said Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL). "3 of the last 4 GOP House Speakers have now had a Motion to Vacate filed against them," tweeted Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA), who labeled it a 'GOP clown show.'
REGULAR ORDER. Again, I'm going to say this for the umpteenth time about the 118th Congress and the GOP. What is going on right now in the Republican-led House IS NOT NORMAL. It is absolutely crazy.
TACTICS. It is hard to express for people just how bad most GOP lawmakers in Congress are at legislating and legislative tactics - and we’ve certainly witnessed that over the past nine months. I fully understand that they don’t like to compromise, but that’s how you get things done.
GOP IN DISARRAY. Getting rid of Speaker McCarthy sure didn't change anything policy-wise for Republicans. I’m not sure what booting out Johnson would achieve at this time. It just makes my head hurt.
UPHEAVAL. Greene's move against Speaker Johnson wasn't the only head-shaking story to break on Friday for House Republicans. A few weeks after announcing he would not run for reelection, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) stunned his colleagues by saying that he would resign early, and leave Congress on April 19, further narrowing the slim GOP majority.
GALLAGHER. "After conversations with my family, I have made the decision to resign my position," Gallagher said in a statement. "I've worked closely with House Republican leadership on this timeline."
NUMBERS. With the resignation of Ken Buck (R-CO) effective on Friday, the GOP margin in the House is now at 218 Republicans to 213 Democrats. It will get even smaller next month.
Gallagher resigns on April 19 - 217 R, 213 D.
Democrats likely to win a seat in New York on April 30 - 217 R, 214 D.
VACANCIES. Republicans won't get a chance to fill the seat of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy in California until May 21. The GOP will likely win back a seat in Ohio as well on June 11. It appears that under Wisconsin election law, Gallagher's seat will stay vacant until November.
GRANGER.COM. Also making news on Friday was Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX), who announced that she would give up the chairmanship of the House Appropriations Committee early, and let someone else tackle the 2025 spending bills. Granger had already announced that she would not run for reelection in November.
NEW CHAIR. The obvious favorite to move up and replace Granger is Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK), who is currently the Chairman of the House Rules Committee. But I would raise just one red flag for the rest of this year - Cole is not a Freedom Caucus type of lawmaker.
VIVA DE LA SANTOS. Don't worry, there was more. Ex-Rep. George Santos - who was expelled late last year - now says he will run for Congress as an independent. "After today’s embarrassing showing in the House I have reflected and decided that I can no longer be part of the Republican Party," Santos said.
FUNDING. Greene’s motion to oust the Speaker was filed as the House was voting 286-134 to approve a compromise package of six government funding bills. In a direct rebuke to Johnson, a majority of Republicans voted against that plan. Democrats voted 185-22 for the package; Republicans were against it 112-101.
HASTERT RULE. That Republican vote tally was a big deal for Speaker Johnson. It violates one GOP rule which says that no bill should get a vote unless it has majority Republican support.
HOW DID I VOTE? On Friday afternoon, Rep. Jim Baird (R-IN) put out a statement touting how he voted against this 2024 funding package. "Washington’s spending addiction has spiraled completely out of control," Baird said. But if you check the actual vote, Baird voted ‘Yes.’.
NO SHUTDOWN. After spending much of the day flirting with a weekend partial government shutdown, the Senate finally voted 74-24 around 2 am to approve the 6-bill government funding package. "It has been a very long and difficult day," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
BORDER. What took so long? Republicans wanted to offer amendments tied to border security and put Democrats on the spot - and for a while, it looked like Senators would run into a ditch. "Taking a handful of votes on proposals that are related to this massive spending bill is not too much to ask," said Sen. John Thune (R-SD).
ADJOURN. After finally cutting a deal with Republicans on a handful of votes, the Senate adjourned at 2:30 am. The White House told reporters a little after midnight, "the President will sign the bill on Saturday." If you didn't know there was drama, you had no idea of the machinations in the Senate on Friday night.
EASTER BREAK. The Congress is now out for the next two weeks, and not due back until the week of April 8. Will things be even worse for Speaker Johnson by then? I don’t know - but it hasn’t been a very good last few weeks for him.
PARKLAND. Vice President Kamala Harris will be in South Florida today to visit Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the site of a mass school shooting in 2018. Harris was invited by gun control activist Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter was among the 17 people killed in that attack.
BUILDING. What makes this visit unique is that Harris will be going into the building where the attack took place. It is in the same state as the day the shooting happened. A number of lawmakers have done the same thing over the past year.
VISIT. "Nothing will bring my daughter back," said Guttenberg. "I only hope that the learning from this site visit results in additional changes to enhance safety for all of us."
RAP SHEET. A Missouri man - better known for being a big fan of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team - pleaded guilty Friday to felony charges related to his actions on Jan. 6, when he helped rioters attack police in the Lower West Terrace Tunnel of the Capitol. "Rally Runner" - now his legal name - was once accused by a guest of Tucker Carlson of being a federal agent. (Narrator: he wasn't.)
MUSE OF HISTORY. March 23, 1830. On this date, the House was opening debate on plans to build a national road stretching 1,500 miles from Buffalo to Washington, D.C. and on to New Orleans. "Congress will always be the best capable of selecting the grand and leading objects which will accommodate themselves to the good of the Union at large," said Rep. Joseph Hemphill of Pennsylvania.
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The House next has votes on April 9.
The Senate is back on April 8.
Check President Biden’s schedule.
Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree.
Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com
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Thanks for the Saturday edition, Mr. Dupree, staying up late and for providing the House vote tally. As you keep reminding us, none of this is normal. The Dems once again saved the speaker’s behind in a GOP-led chamber. And at the rate of GOPers running for the exits, Hakeem Jeffries could be speaker before Nov. And whether she’s sentient enough to realize it, MTG may have just helped push through aid to Ukraine. She’s like the Urkel of the House of Reps. Speaking of TV comedies, the House right now feels like one of those 12:55 SNL sketches. It’s weird, surreal, deeply unfunny and keeps you awake.
Great call out on Baird