Sweet karma showed up in the House yesterday.
We all remember this moment, when Marjorie Taylor Greene (Q-Moscow), sporting a Cruella DeVille-like fur, booed President Biden during his State of the Union address.
It was an embarrassing spectacle and a sign that radical elements within the GOP were on the move, our very democracy in their sights.
The tables were turned sharply on Greene last night, however, as she rose to make good on a threat to oust her own party’s speaker, Mike Johnson (R-LA). The move appeared to catch the Republican leadership off guard. And as it became clear what Greene was doing, the floor erupted in boos—this time aimed at her.
Democrats under Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) had been prepared for this moment. They had earlier pledged to reward Speaker Johnson for working with them on Ukraine aid and the budget. It was an almost unheard of idea, asking Democrats to support a radical right Speaker, but these are unusual times. And true to their plan, they joined with most Republicans to block Greene. A motion to table her motion to vacate passed by a whopping 359 to 43.
For those who have been targeted by Greene, or really for anyone entirely sick of and exhausted by her antics, it was a moment of considerable catharsis. And it raised two big questions for political observers. First, is Greene’s power, along with that of the Freedom Caucus, finally beginning to wane? And second, what does the vote mean for Speaker Mike Johnson’s future as leader of his conference?
As I consider both of these questions today, take a moment and enjoy the sound of representatives from both sides of the aisle booing Moscow Marge in this clip:
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From Greene to faded
Rep. Greene has long relished her role as a chaos agent, made possible by the thin House GOP majority. The fact that only a few seats separate Republicans and Democrats in the balance of power, paired with an absurd rule, foisted upon Speaker McCarthy as a condition for his election, that allowed any single member to move to vacate the chair at any point, meant that the radicals could and did hold the Speaker continuously ransom.
The GOP had already ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy in November for daring to compromise with Democrats on the budget. Greene was determined not to allow the new speaker, Mike Johnson, to do the same.
As the GOP majority steadily shrank, with the expulsion of indicted fabulist George Santos and the departures of party critics like Ken Buck, Greene’s power only seemed to grow. Republicans now could only afford to lose one vote on any bill. Any more, and it would flounder. That meant that members of the Freedom Caucus could hold up critical legislation by simply refusing to allow it out of the Rules Committee, which they controlled, and there was little Speaker Johnson could do about it short of working with Democrats to advance it.
The shrinking majority also meant that an even smaller number of Republicans—in theory just two—could pull down Speaker Johnson if they didn’t like what he was up to. Capitalizing on this, Greene threatened to oust Johnson should he allow a vote on Ukraine aid and continue to fund the Justice Department and Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation that has targeted her beloved Donald Trump.
On both of these matters Johnson delayed, maneuvered and, thankfully, ultimately ignored Greene, risking the future of his position as the House GOP leader. Johnson permitted the budget to pass with the help of Democratic votes, and he allowed an aid bill for Ukraine to finally reach the House floor where it also passed overwhelmingly.
Greene was furious. And even after meeting with Johnson just a day earlier, she made good on her ouster threat last night.
But she badly misread the room and the mood of both her own party and the Democrats. During her speech in support of her motion to vacate, Greene quoted Jeffries, saying, “In a recent interview, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, ‘Even though we’re in the minority, we effectively have been governing as if we were in the majority.’”
At these words, Democrats cheered loudly. That’s because Greene was speaking the truth, for once. After all, it was Democrats who provided the votes on the Ukraine aid bill, who got the hard fought budget through, and now were keeping Mike Johnson on as Speaker rather than allow the House to descend into chaos.
Greene also argued that the motion to vacate would not put the Democrats in charge, because that would only happen if some Republicans “decided to vote for Hakeem Jeffries.” Again, upon these words, Democrats cheered, knowing that the day when Jeffries would become Speaker is not far off. They began chanting, “Hakeem! Hakeem! Hakeem!” and the session had to be gaveled back into order.
Here was that moment:
After the motion to table passed with broad bipartisan support, with only 11 Republicans voting against it, Greene went out to the Capitol steps to speak to reporters. But it was startling to see how many other members wanted to make their opinions known.
As Tia Mitchell from the Atlanta Journal Constitution noted:
I am astounded that, as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene speaks to media about her failed motion to vacate, so many GOP members are also here to give interviews criticizing her. They are pissed. They are vocal. “The gloves are off,” one told me.
And off they were, indeed.
Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) called Greene’s move a “tantrum” and was unsparing in his criticism. “Most of us, by the time we turn 12 years old, figure out that tantrums don’t actually work and apparently, not everybody in Congress has got the memo,” he told the press, referring to Greene.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), who faces a hotly contested election in his swing district in November, told reporters that “Moscow Marjorie has clearly gone off the deep end—maybe the result of a space laser.”
Greene had one card to play, and she played it badly. Now that it’s clear her threats to remove Johnson carry no further risk, her ability to block legislation or demand defunding will be much diminished.
Wither Mike Johnson?
Even while Marge’s star is fading, a cloud still hangs over Speaker Mike Johnson. The vote on the motion to table demonstrated that Johnson owes his political survival to the Democrats. Had Jeffries not instructed his caucus to support Johnson as a reward for working with them, and instead had told all Democrats to stand aside and permit the GOP to move to decapitate its own leader again, Johnson would be out.
It bears noting that there were 11 Republicans who voted against tabling the motion to vacate, meaning that there may be even more GOP members opposed now to Johnson than there were to McCarthy, who lost his job after eight GOP members voted in favor of ouster along with all Democrats. Greene was eager to point out that her effort received even more votes than the successful ouster of McCarthy.
As a piece in Politico today noted, that leaves Johnson in a precarious position should he wish to keep his job after November’s election. Should the GOP somehow retain control of the House, which most observers already say is unlikely, it will probably be by a very slim margin once again, and nearly certainly less than the 11 who signaled they are ready for new leadership.
That sets up an odd situation for Johnson. He is actually more likely to hold power as Minority Leader, should the Democrats retake the House, than as Speaker, should the Republicans prevail. If he knew what was best for him, he would understand by now that the MAGA tiger cannot be ridden, and he should move sharply away from that wing and use this present victory over Greene to further isolate and defang the far right within his conference.
Former Speaker McCarthy didn’t understand that. He had brought Greene into the fold, thinking that the necessities of governing would tame her. That didn’t happen, and Johnson would be wise to put as much distance now as he can between himself and the likes of Marjorie Taylor Greene.
She’s a damned bully who overstepped her bounds. She is a stupid woman feeding her ego with power, and she made enemies, because, in the end, she stands only for herself and her very-questionable, moneyed supporters. Moscow Marge and Moscow Mitch: Chaos Agents and Grifters. Next up: When is the SEC going to investigate her for insider-trading?
We shouldn't overlook the fact that Trump threw his support behind Johnson this time, after failing to come to McCarthy's aid. That said, Shadow Speaker Hakeem Jeffries is effectively in control of the house now. The republicans can't move any legislation without them, and Johnson is beholden to him for his job. It should also be noted that Nancy Pelosi did a damn fine job of grooming her replacement. Hakeem Jeffries will be a fantastic Speaker come January.
In the meantime, I look forward to seeing Marge have the gold-painted gates of Mar-a-Lago slammed in her face. She publicly defied Trump. He's likely to take that with his usual grace and charm.