Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is taking the plunge on a massive package of foreign aid that’s cleaved his conference and threatened his gavel, brushing off his detractors in a go-for-broke effort to help beleaguered allies overseas.
Johnson has won early Democratic support for his multipronged strategy to provide military assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, accompanied by a grab-all package of Republican national security priorities designed to appease wary conservatives within the House GOP. He’s vowing that all four components will get separate votes before the week is out.
But the plan drew an immediate backlash from hard-liners in his conference, including spending hawks who don’t want to pile billions more onto the national debt; isolationists who want to focus Washington’s resources on domestic problems; and a wide spectrum of rank-and-file Republicans who have demanded that the legislation include tougher security at the southern U.S. border — a notable exclusion from the Speaker’s policy blueprint.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), a frequent critic of the Speaker, has already introduced a motion to remove him from power — a resolution that’s hanging over the coming Ukraine votes, lying in wait for Greene to force it to the floor. And that threat became more menacing Tuesday, when Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican with a libertarian streak, announced he’d support Johnson’s removal if Greene’s resolution is activated.
“Mike Johnson’s going for the Triple Crown here against our base,” Massie said. “He’s voted for an omnibus that spends more than [Nancy] Pelosi. He’s put his finger on the scales to pass [the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] without warrants. And now he’s about to do Ukraine without protecting the American border.
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