Motion To Vacate Speaker’s Chair Gains Momentum; Third GOP Rep. Supports Move

Less than a year after Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was removed from his post, Republicans are still in disarray and struggling to find common ground on the direction of the party, and its leadership, in Washington D.C.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) now faces a challenge to his speakership after a third Republican, Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), supported the motion on Friday to remove him. Gosar’s action followed a House decision to hold a Saturday vote on Johnson’s proposal, which includes four bills totaling $95 billion in foreign aid for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.

The motion to vacate Johnson’s position gained traction as another Republican lawmaker joined the effort to oust him over his foreign aid strategy. The plan had narrowly passed a critical procedural vote with more backing from Democrats than Republicans.

Gosar criticized GOP leaders in a statement for not tying the foreign aid, especially funds for Ukraine, to U.S. border security improvements. The critique reflects the dissatisfaction among certain conservative members who are skeptical of foreign aid and opposed the plan’s progression to a final vote.

“[R]ather than spending the resources to secure our southern border and combating the invasion of 11 million illegals and despite repeated promises there would be no additional money going to Ukraine without first securing our border, the United States House of Representatives, under the direction of the Speaker, is on the verge of sending another $61 billion to further draw America into an endless and purposeless war in Ukraine,” Gosar said in a statement, according to Fox News.

“I have added my name in support of the motion to vacate the Speaker. Our border cannot be an afterthought. We need a Speaker who puts America first rather than bending to the reckless demands of the warmongers, neo-cons and the military industrial complex making billions from a costly and endless war half a world away.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, (D-NY) said to reporters on Friday, “We will have a conversation about how to deal with any hypothetical motion to vacate, which at this point hasn’t been noticed.” He added, “The prerequisite to the conversation is to make sure that the national security legislation in totality is passed by the House of Representatives.”

Under current House rules, it only takes one lawmaker to file the motion to vacate to initiate a House-wide vote on whether to remove the speaker.

Fed up with the current state of affairs, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) filed the motion to vacate Speaker Johnson in March amidst a tumultuous debate over what she described as a “uniparty minibus” bill. At the time, the House passed the $1.2 trillion federal budget package by a slim margin, signaling a critical move towards averting an impending partial government shutdown set for midnight.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) supported Rep. Greene’s resolution earlier this week following a private GOP meeting. During the meeting, he warned that he would seek Speaker Johnson’s removal if Johnson did not resign after the scheduled Saturday vote on his foreign aid proposal.

Speaker Johnson has encountered significant opposition from conservative members of his party regarding his foreign aid plan, especially the proposed aid for Ukraine. Criticism also arose over funding for humanitarian aid in Gaza through the Israel aid package. One key concession for Republicans was ensuring none of the funds for Gaza would go to the UN Relief and Works Agency, accused by some of having connections to Hamas.

Moreover, conservatives have criticized the decision to merge the four aid bills into one, arguing it resembled a previously opposed $95 billion package passed by the Senate. The aid package received more Democratic (165) than Republican (151) ayes to advance to a final vote.