Topline
Far-right Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Ga., filed a motion to vacate the speakership on Friday morning, arguing it’s time for the restive House GOP conference to find a new leader after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R.-La., brought a $1.2 trillion government funding package to the floor for a vote to avoid a partial government shutdown.
Key Facts
Greene told reporters after a vote on the funding bill—which passed 286-134 despite hard-right opposition—that the motion to vacate was filed, but called it a “warning” and said it’s “time to go through the process (to) find a new speaker of the House.”
She did not file the motion as privileged, meaning there is no timeline on a vote, and Greene said “it doesn’t have to be forced and throw the House into chaos.”
Ordinarily for a “privileged” motion, the House would have to consider it within two legislative days after it’s recognized, though the chamber is heading to recess for two weeks Friday, CNN reported.
Greene reportedly handed the motion to vacate to the parliamentarian during the House vote on the spending bill.
The Georgia representative teased the possibility of filing a motion to remove Johnson from his role on Steve Bannon’s podcast Friday morning, saying, “we are going to be making decisions on a minute-by-minute basis today.”
Johnson became speaker after far-right Republicans ousted former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R.-Calif., because he worked with Democrats to pass a spending bill and avoid a shutdown in October.
Forbes has contacted Greene’s office and Johnson’s office for comment.
Key Background
The White House announced the $1.2 billion minibus on Tuesday, days before the Friday deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown. House and Senate leaders said Tuesday they reached an agreement on a full-year government funding bill after ironing out the details for the Department of Homeland Security budget, which had been holding up talks amid a partisan debate over immigration and border security. The deal includes funding for DHS along with the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Labor, Education, Health and Human Services and State. This is the last funding package Congress needs to pass to fund fiscal year 2024, which ends after September, though—if it passes—it will have taken Congress extending the deadline three times.