A SPEAKER’S IMPOSSIBLE POSITION A bloc of House Democrats are publicly vowing they’d step in to save Speaker Mike Johnson from a looming threat by fellow Republicans to toss him out. But, from Johnson’s perspective, that might not be any help at all. That’s because any Democratic rescue mission would leave the speaker in the precarious position of saving his job while sapping his clout inside in the House GOP — a point that Johnson’s main tormentor acknowledged Wednesday. “It would prove me absolutely right that he's the Democrats’ speaker of the House, not the Republicans’ elected speaker,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said in response to POLITICO. Complex math: To be sure, Greene is alone for now in openly agitating for a vote on Johnson’s removal — most GOP lawmakers are anxious to avoid a redo of last fall’s weeks-long drama — but in the narrowly-divided chamber just a handful of supporters matter, and a number of hard-line conservatives have hinted they could join her push if Johnson miscalculates. To name a couple: Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) told reporters Wednesday he was not “closing the door” to backing Greene, while Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) said earlier this week that his posture would “depend on the context.” That has prompted some Democrats to volunteer to step in to offset any GOP defections — so long as Johnson brings a long-awaited Ukraine aid bill to the House floor. “If he's a man of his word and brings these bills to the floor and gives an up-or-down vote, we wouldn't have a reason to join” an ouster effort, Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.) said. “Frankly, if [Greene] tries, we'll end up with Speaker Hakeem Jeffries.” Jefffries and other Democratic leaders haven’t yet spoken definitively on their posture, signaling they will hold a caucus-wide discussion on the path forward. “Members want to see the speaker do the right thing,” Caucus Chair Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) said Wednesday. ‘Chaos in the House’: Meanwhile, Johnson and his allies issued warnings about what another successful motion to vacate would mean — even as GOP leaders’ plans to tee up a vote on expiring surveillance authorities flopped on the floor, with 19 Republicans breaking ranks on a rule vote. “It would be chaos in the House,” the speaker said Wednesday before meeting with Greene for more than an hour. Greene was unyielding in her threats after the meeting but still wouldn’t offer a timeline for triggering her motion and forcing a vote: “Because of my respect for my conference, I won't be drawing red lines or saying triggers or putting on a date,” she said, adding that it would depend on how Johnson navigates the spy powers and Ukraine funding battles. In Johnson’s corner: Notably, three of the eight Republicans who voted to oust Kevin McCarthy last year — Reps. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), Bob Good (R-Va.) and Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) — have said they don’t plan to move against Johnson. Members are also watching closely whether Donald Trump eventually weighs in — any nudge from the former president could tip the outcome one way or the other. Johnson's allies largely declined to weigh in on the implications if the speaker survives Greene’s motion thanks to Democrats. But conservatives have long speculated that it would be an untenable position and result in an all-out revolt from his right. “I don't think anybody wants to repeat what the country had to go through last year,” newly-elected Appropriations Chair Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said. “There's no obvious alternative, and there's no exit strategy. It's a bad idea.” — Anthony Adragna, with assists from Jordain Carney, Daniella Diaz and Nicholas Wu
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