It has never been easy for President Mike Johnson to push for an aid package for Ukraine in the face of fierce opposition from his own party.
But it was made even more politically dangerous by some concessions to the far right that he inherited from his predecessor: allowing a single lawmaker to call a snap vote to oust the speaker and give extremists a block of seats in a key council. controls what legislation can be introduced into the House of Commons.
Both of those concessions, agreed to by former Speaker Kevin McCarthy more than a year ago, are now tormenting Mr. Johnson as he tries to pass a $95 billion aid bill for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. They have forced him to rely heavily on Democrats — not only to clear the way for the legislation and drag it across the finish line but also to potentially save his job.
Mr. Johnson’s predicament was made clear on the floor of the House of Commons on Thursday when a group of extremists gathered around him in a heated argument. One after another called on the speaker to tie the foreign aid package to strict anti-immigration measures, but Mr. Johnson refused, responding that he would not have enough Republican support to push for such a measure, according to people involved in private affairs. conversation.
Minutes after the clash, some far-right lawmakers who had previously opposed joining the Republican effort to oust him began to appear more open to the idea.
“My hope is that the recall motion will be a one-dose elixir,” said Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida, who led the charge to oust Mr. McCarthy. “But sometimes there are some therapies that require more than one dose. And I hope the Leave motion will not be the case, but we will use the elixir as many times as necessary to save the country.”
Mr. Johnson has said that he “has not asked a single Democrat to get involved” in helping him fight the effort to remove him.
“I don’t spend my time walking around thinking about the petition to leave,” he told reporters at the Capitol on Wednesday. “I have a job to do here and I will do that job regardless of the personal consequences.”
At the same time, three extremist members of the House Rules Committee on Thursday signaled that they intended to block Mr. Johnson’s attempt to bring the foreign aid bill to the floor, which would force the speaker had to take the unusual step of relying on Democratic votes on the committee to do so.
On Wednesday night, those same Republicans — Representatives Chip Roy of Texas, Ralph Norman of South Carolina and Thomas Massie of Kentucky — indicated that they would also block a border security bill from reaching the floor. after Mr Johnson proposed taking it private. The measure is an attempt to placate hard-liners who have asked the speaker not to push for aid to Ukraine without winning sweeping concessions from Democrats on immigration policy.
“I believe this is part of a larger effort to advance something for very politically expedient causes that I am on record disagreeing with,” Mr. Roy said, explained his opposition to allowing the immigration measure to be introduced on its own.
He believes the only acceptable solution is to include it in foreign aid packages.
Mr Johnson said that was simply not possible.
“Not all of my fellow Republicans agree with that rule,” he said on Fox News Wednesday. “And that means the only way to get rule on the floor is to have some Democrats. Well, they’re not for border security. That’s not their policy.”
The rebellion in the Rules Committee was a serious violation of custom. Traditionally, the panel is a speaker’s body and legislation is often discussed in a straight party-line vote. Until this Congress, it was considered a sacrosanct edict that lawmakers never voted against a rule introduced by their party on the House floor — let alone in committee.
But the seeds of that breach were sown last January by Mr McCarthy, who, in winning the vote to become speaker, agreed to give the extremists three seats on the committee – enough to make a rule.
The idea was that their bloc on the panel would mean the far right had a veto over what the Commons could consider, but the result instead is that both Mr McCarthy and Mr Johnson steer the committee. They have introduced important measures such as bills to maintain government funding without any regulations.
And in the case of foreign aid bills – as with the debt limit deal Mr. McCarthy reached last year with President Biden – they have turned to Democrats to get the votes needed to advance the measures. that members of their party would not approve of.
Since winning seats, the three extremist parties have largely voted to allow bills they disagree with to come to the floor for a vote. At least one member, Mr. Massie, has previously said he will not let his personal ideology dictate his voting on the committee.
But Mr. Johnson’s determination to push through a foreign aid package has changed that.
Mr Massie, who has now endorsed Mr Johnson’s ouster, wrote on social media: “Speaker Johnson plans to pass rules on a $100 billion foreign aid package with the participation of party members Democrats on the Rules Committee.” “Is he working for the Democratic Party or the Republican Party now?”
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Georgia Republican who introduced the resolution to remove Mr. Johnson, praised the blockade, saying it was evidence that “people are really fed up with Johnson’s BS.”
“I am truly grateful to Kevin McCarthy for appointing these strong conservatives to the Rules Committee,” she said.
