As angry as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) is about how Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has led the chamber since taking the gavel in October, there isn’t a better option who will do things differently.
On Friday, Greene filed a motion to vacate, a resolution that would remove Johnson from the speakership if it is supported by a majority of the chamber. The resolution will only face a floor vote if Greene makes it “privileged,” in which case it would face a vote within 48 hours.
Greene says that she is not calling the resolution up yet so as to ensure the House GOP has time to find a new speaker before the vote and the chamber is not paralyzed as it was in October when Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and a small group of Republicans ousted then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy with the support of House Democrats.
It took the House Republican Conference three weeks to settle on Johnson as McCarthy’s replacement amid bitter infighting, backstabbing, and frustration that saw the party reject three nominees before electing Johnson.
While it’s nice to see Greene recognize the need to have a speaker by not immediately forcing the motion to vacate, there is no alternative to Johnson that will earn sufficient support on the floor and run the chamber in the manner that Greene and other hard-line conservatives wish.
By all accounts Greene wants to remove Johnson from the speakership because she is unhappy with his leadership, especially for his reliance on Democratic votes to pass bills and his willingness to consider more foreign aid to Ukraine.
As understandable as this is, the fact remains that the House of Representatives is afflicted by a minuscule majority that encompasses a broad range of ideological positions. On one end are members like Greene and Gaetz, who are among the most conservative members of the chamber. But on the other end are Reps. Don Bacon (R-NE), Brandon Williams (R-NY), and Jen Kiggans (R-VA), who represent swing districts and have much more centrist positions on many issues, and were a part of the vote coalition with Democrats that agreed to fund the government last week.
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As much as Greene may dislike it, the alternative to Johnson is House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). With a House majority that is going to shrink to one vote next month, Jeffries only needs to buy the support of one Republican to take the gavel and enact a sort of coalition majority to run the House of Representatives.
Like it or not, Johnson is the only Republican who can be speaker right now.