The dispute over Ukraine aid is dividing Republicans. Mike Johnson is sticking to his external aid plan. Two party colleagues are preparing his downfall.
Washington, DC - House Speaker Mike Johnson is continuing to work on a foreign aid plan that has thrown his conference into turmoil and led two Republicans to launch an attempt to oust him from the House's highest office.
Instead of the complex four-part plan he unveiled this week, Johnson will now try to pass five bills - one each for aid to Ukraine, Israel and Indo-Pacific allies, as well as a GOP wish list of foreign policy priorities and a fifth stand-alone bill that addresses widespread Republican calls to strengthen the southern US border. GOP leadership said the House would meet until Saturday to consider the bills.
Johnson under pressure: “Eviction motion” could end his term as speaker
The new approach is risky and could be fatal for the speaker. His six-month term is threatened by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's (R-Georgia) promise to file an "eviction motion" to oust Johnson (R-Louisiana) if he puts Ukraine aid on the table, something that many right-wingers have criticized Republicans reject.
At a press conference on Wednesday evening, Johnson was visibly emotional when asked why he decided to pass the foreign aid package at this time.
“Listen, my philosophy is to do the right thing and let things go. … If I acted out of fear of being evicted, I wouldn’t be able to do my job,” he said. “This is a critical time now. … I can make a selfish decision and do something else. But I’m doing what I believe is the right thing here.”
Johnson between two fronts at the Republican conference - but sticks to his foreign aid plan
Indeed, the stakes are high for the speaker as he must navigate a bitterly divided Republican conference. Some members are vocally opposed to aid to Ukraine without first securing the U.S. border, while others believe the aid, along with funds for Israel, is an important national security priority; In addition, some Republicans question the speaker's leadership style. It's a quandary for Johnson: If you consider aid to Ukraine, the hammer will inevitably be wrested away from him.
Demoralized Republicans walked out of a four-hour meeting with Johnson and his allies on Tuesday night, before the release of the latest proposal, after failing to find a path for foreign aid that would be supported by Republicans and not dependent on Democrats. Several people familiar with the meeting, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the internal dynamics, said the session enlightened them and Johnson about the consequences of delaying the foreign aid package: It could all lead to his firing.
“The battle lines were very clear in the end,” said one Republican. “It was very clear that [the impeachment motion] would be made if the Speaker's plan was implemented.” Still, Johnson acted, telling Republicans in a text to colleagues Wednesday morning that the House was following “significant feedback and Discussions” this week will follow up on its plan with some significant changes. He released the text of legislation supporting Ukraine, Israel and Indo-Pacific allies on Wednesday; Language for the GOP wish list and the border is expected later.
The three separate bills funding military aid to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan largely mirror the $95 billion for national security passed by the Senate. The House legislation converts some of the aid, money going directly to Ukraine, into a loan and is championed by former President Donald Trump. It also includes just over $9 billion in humanitarian aid for Gaza, the West Bank, Ukraine and other areas in need, which Democrats have demanded as a condition for support from them.
Biden on Johnson's side: Can the plan with Democrats succeed?
Johnson indicated on Wednesday evening that there would likely be an amendment to the package to cut humanitarian aid, which he described as "concerning". House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) urged Republicans on Wednesday night to put the foreign aid package up for a vote, but did not pledge Democratic support for the measures.
“It’s time for the House to act, and act decisively,” Jeffries said. “We can either confront Russian aggression to defend democracy, or we can allow extreme MAGA Republicans to appease the Russian leader.”
Jeffries said Democrats will "evaluate" the process and the final product, including the amendments, before making a decision on how to move forward. Nonetheless, the speaker's proposal received a major boost from President Biden on Wednesday afternoon. Biden said he “strongly” supports the proposal and urged the House and Senate to pass it quickly.
“I will sign this proposal immediately to send a message to the world: We stand with our friends and will not allow Iran or Russia to succeed,” he said in a statement likely to sway Democrats will support the plan and amplify GOP outrage over it.
Senate can block changes: Trump supporters and hardliners incite against Johnson
Even if the House manages to pass the foreign aid package, any change would trigger another vote in the Senate, which is already causing controversy. Some GOP senators also strongly oppose Ukraine aid. At a closed meeting of the conservative House Republican Study Committee on Tuesday, Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) and Stephen Miller, a former Trump adviser, fired up the anti-Ukraine caucus to clear every possible hurdle to review Johnson's plan to prevent.
As she left the session, Rep. Debbie Lesko (R-Arizona) said she was "very frustrated" with Johnson and had recently expressed that to him. She echoed the words of many hardline Republicans who have encouraged Johnson to tie the border security bill to the other four national security items to pressure Democrats on the issue. “He doesn’t listen to us,” she said.
Johnson needs every vote he can get. Republicans have an extremely narrow majority in the House of Representatives, which they hope voters will expand in November to improve their chances of pushing through a conservative agenda. The GOP currently has a two-vote majority, meaning H. If Democrats don't support Johnson's plan or challenge him for the presidency, they would only need three Republicans to defeat him on both fronts.
However, that lead would narrow to two Republicans if Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisconsin) resigns. He was due to resign this Friday, but is now expected to leave after the foreign aid bill passes the full House floor. “The congressman has the flexibility to stay and support the relief package on Saturday,” his office said Wednesday.
Express expulsion due to frustration with Johnson? Republican speaker faces criticism from both sides
Meanwhile, all eyes are on Greene and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky), the two public supporters of Johnson's expulsion. If Greene decides to act, she could introduce the proposal under special rules that give the House 48 hours to vote on it.
In some ways, it's a hopeless situation for Johnson. Some of his members are increasingly frustrated with Johnson's leadership style. They note that he published plans that he subsequently appeared to reconsider - a turnaround that alienated some of those who initially supported the success of his speakership.
Others want Johnson to take more aggressive action to pressure Democrats, while still others who want to help foreign allies want the speaker to move forward with the Senate proposal because they don't think Republicans are on to anything will agree.
Asked whether Johnson would put forward the Senate package if all else failed, a Republican ally-turned-critic of the speaker said: "He doesn't have the courage to do it."
Anything better than Speaker Johnson? Republicans side with Democrats
Instead, Republicans who want to govern are more willing to sign a Democratic relief petition that would force a vote on the Senate bill if the petition reaches 218 signatures. Currently, only one Republican and 194 Democrats have signed. But some Republicans are waiting until Johnson's plan fails before signing the proposal.
A large number of Republicans are upset about the structure of Johnson's foreign aid plan - they may try to prevent several procedural hurdles from being overcome before the package can be introduced in Parliament. Democrats who support the content of the foreign aid bills are still hesitant to get behind the GOP package because they fear amendments will add policies they oppose.
The hard right flank has signaled that it will reject Johnson's plan in its entirety. The House Freedom Caucus quickly rejected the proposal, even though it contains the "core components of H.R. 2," a tough immigration law that bans migrants from entering the United States, according to the speaker's office.
“Speaker Johnson is wasting the last chance we have to combat the border crisis. This goes against every promise Republicans have made to you,” the group said.
Johnson also depends on Democrats – can education through the secret service save him?
In a meeting with the speaker Tuesday morning, the three hardliners among Republicans who sit on the Rules Committee - Reps. Ralph Norman (South Carolina), Chip Roy (Texas) and Massie-Johnson that they will block his plan in committee, forcing Republicans to rely on the four Democrats on the committee to make up for their lost votes. It is possible that Democrats support the national security bill but not the border security measure.
Norman said the meeting ended with a request from Johnson: Please inform the intelligence community about the urgent need to defend Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. “We look at the situation in America and ask ourselves why we are not defending our democracy and defending other countries,” he said. “In [Johnson’s] defense, he needs us to… hear the reports he’s getting about Ukraine.”
At a meeting the previous evening, several national security committee chairs tried to provide information about the situation abroad, but were rebuffed by members with a more isolationist worldview. Johnson has suggested that his previous opposition to Ukraine aid as a rank-and-file MP has changed since becoming speaker because he is receiving more frequent intelligence briefings.
Trump keeps interfering - Johnson's tricks in the House of Representatives
Johnson isn't getting much support from Republicans, including for a border security bill that appears aimed at winning him -- lawmakers have demanded that the U.S. border be secured before funding is made available to Ukraine and other allies become. Republicans had a chance to consider a tough, bipartisan security bill earlier this year, but rejected it because Trump loudly attacked it.
The four national security bills will likely need Democratic support since many Republicans do not want to fund Ukraine aid. The House Rules Committee, which governs the consideration of bills in the House, is expected to consider them together.
Johnson has instructed the Rules Committee to consider the border security proposal separately so that Republicans can amend it in the plenary session. This has greatly angered many Republicans, who see the speaker's actions as dooming the proposal, prompting dozens to protest the rules vote.
“A separate vote that has no impact to show once again that Republicans want to secure the border wall ... yes, that's a joke,” said Freedom Caucus Chairman Bob Good (R-Virginia).
We are currently testing machine translations. This article was automatically translated from English into German.
This article was first published in English on April 18, 2024 at the “Washingtonpost.com” - as part of a cooperation, it is now also available in translation to readers of the IPPEN.MEDIA portals.