Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said Friday that she met with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and threatened to introduce a motion to scrap the border agreement she struck with Democrats. .
“In a meeting with him and a number of other members yesterday, I told Speaker Johnson that I would not support him in any way, shape or form. [continuing resolution.]” Greene told former White House adviser Steve Bannon in an interview.
“I told him yesterday in his office that this was absolutely unacceptable and that I would vacate the chair,” she added. “And the fact is, we have the first mover's authority, we are the ones who are in control, and we need to control the negotiations. We did it again this morning, so the ball is in his court. .”
Her comments came after Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters in a brief statement that a deal had been reached to avoid a partial government shutdown next week when some spending expires on Jan. 19.
“After weeks of intense negotiations, we have reached a strong final agreement that will allow the appropriations committees and all parties working on this to complete the appropriations process,” he said. “This is an important part of keeping the government running.”
“Our most important agreements remain,” he added. “We are finalizing our next steps and working toward a robust spending process. Stay tuned for more.”
Some lawmakers, including Greene, were unhappy with the deal and at one point called on the speaker to scrap it and find an alternative.
Greene said last Monday that she would vote against any legislation based on the $1.6 trillion deal. That's because the bill doesn't include enough money for Republican priorities like securing the U.S.-Mexico border. She reiterated her own assertion Friday, arguing that the deal essentially amounted to Congress moving forward with “Nancy Pelosi's budget.”
He also claimed that Johnson would be “weakening border security” by negotiating with Democrats over aid to Ukraine during its war with Russia.
Members this week urged Prime Minister Boris Johnson to reconsider the plan he announced over the weekend, which would bring in $1.59 trillion and an additional $69 billion in line with the spending caps of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA). The Hill previously reported that the changes are in line with budget changes.
Greene is the only person threatening to oust Johnson from the House speakership, just months after his predecessor, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), was ousted from the post in a historic vote. isn't it. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) did not rule out supporting a motion to remove Johnson, but said it was not his preferred path.
A handful of House Democrats have said they would step in to help keep Mr. Johnson in the event of a conservative revolt, but it would come at a cost.
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