WASHINGTON — A throng of media crowded around U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on Wednesday evening on the steps of the U.S. Capitol, straining to hear her angry reaction after a bipartisan coalition of House members dismissed her efforts to oust Mike Johnson as House speaker.
But also nearby, still within earshot, were roughly a dozen other GOP lawmakers who wanted to make sure the media knew they were outraged, too. Congressman Rich McCormick, R-Suwanee, said even some lawmakers who like Greene and are unhappy with Johnson did not approve of her surprise move to force a vote on her motion to vacate.
“They were angry that she brought it to the floor today, thought there was a betrayal of them against what they had agreed on,” he said.
Greene on Wednesday shrugged off the criticism and said it is Johnson and the House Republicans who voted to save him who are on the hot seat.
“The uniparty was on full display today,” the Republican from Rome said. “American conservatives all over the country that gave us the majority in 2022, they want a Republican Party that’s ready to fight for our agenda. They want a Republican Party that’s ready to pass President (Donald) Trump’s agenda. And this Republican Party is not ready, and they proved it today.”
U.S. Rep. Carlos Jimenez, R-Fla., interjected from behind her.
“You’re not the Republican Party,” he said. “Don’t talk to the Republican Party.”
As McCormick spoke out, Greene and her gaggle of reporters passed by. He continued to sound off about Greene’s theatrics on the House floor, saying the final straw was her reading aloud the list of her grievances against Johnson, then insisting the House clerk recite it again.
“She knew it was going to fail and still continued to play this game,” McCormick said.
Never before have so many GOP lawmakers been so willing to openly challenge Greene, who has long been a target for Democrats.
Greene was a political newcomer when she was first elected in 2020. Despite her far-right positions and baseless conspiracy theories, many GOP lawmakers said they were willing to give her a chance to prove herself in Washington. Her loyalty to then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy earned her a seat at the table and gave her legitimacy.
Her close relationship with former President Donald Trump led many conservatives to stay quiet, even as Greene frustrated them at times with her extreme positions on cutting government funding and foreign aid.
But member after member said Wednesday that their position toward her had changed after she forced the vote on Johnson’s speakership. Democrats joined with Republicans, voting 359-43 to table the motion to vacate. Just 11 GOP members and 32 Democrats voted with Greene to move forward on Johnson’s removal.
Many of these Republicans now head home to face criticism from far-right constituents who agree that Johnson has been too willing to compromise with Democrats and has abandoned his conservative values.
Greene’s critics say she led the charge solely to rile up her base and reap the fundraising benefits that come from that. They say she is uninterested in facing the realities of governing, which requires the type of compromise Greene disdains, given House Republicans’ narrow majority.
Rep. John Rutherford, another Florida Republican, read aloud a quote from a recent interview that Greene gave to far-right podcaster Steve Bannon where she said GOP pushback would only result in her raising the same amount or more in political donations than when Democrats stripped her of committee assignments shortly after her 2020 election.
“I raised $3.5 million, and I’ll do it again, probably even more,” Greene told Bannon.
Rutherford, who has the quote saved in his phone, shook his head as he returned the device to his pocket.
“They don’t want to govern; they just want to blow stuff up and go out and get clicks, cash and a national profile,” he said.
Most Democrats do not support Johnson’s politics, and there are differences of opinion within the Republican Party about how well he has performed as speaker. However, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle said they wanted him to remain in place for now and avoid the chaos and uncertainty that would be created if he were ousted.
During a speakership vacancy, the House is unable to conduct business.
It is unclear whether House Republicans will attempt to punish Greene for Wednesday’s vote. Johnson said he was relieved the matter had been laid to rest and jabbed at Greene’s credibility after the vote.
“Hopefully, this is the end of the personality politics and the frivolous character assassination,” he told reporters after the vote.
But Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, did not indicate he would take any action.
It also does not appear that Greene’s power move will have a long-term effect on her relationship with Trump. He said in a post after the vote that he disapproved of removing Johnson from leadership for now but that it might come up in the future.
Trump started his post by making clear where he stood on the woman behind it all.
“I absolutely love Marjorie Taylor Greene,” he wrote. “She’s got spirit, she’s got fight, and I believe she’ll be around and on our side for a long time to come.”
Plenty of Greene’s colleagues on the Hill hope Greene will have less notoriety and visibility in the future. Among them was Rep. John Duarte, a California Republican, who said “the gloves are off” on dealing with Greene.
“I think you’re seeing a broad section of our conference lose patience and lose respect for her,” he said.
Duarte said he was willing to tolerate Greene during her earlier controversies but felt her motion to vacate had crossed a line and showed that she was not willing to have constructive debate on the issues.
“This is a person who is simply causing chaos in a very important American institution,” Duarte said. “This is a huge part of our constitutional government here that this one person is causing chaos in for her own notoriety. It deserves criticism.”
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