Could Mike Johnson Face a Similar Fate as Kevin McCarthy, Losing His Speaker Position?

Written By Bess Levin

In October of the previous year, a mere three months back, Kevin McCarthy was removed from his role as Speaker by House Republicans and replaced with Mike Johnson. This happened after several awkward weeks. To the average individual, it would seem downright crazy that these same politicians would consider removing their newly appointed Speaker almost immediately after he assumed the role. But seemingly, the far-right does not see any problem with this!

On a Wednesday, an attempt by Johnson to prevent the shutting down of the government was torpedoed by 13 extreme conservatives. They blocked a procedural move to protest a $1.66 trillion spending pact that Johnson had arranged with Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer for that year. Coming out of a conference meeting, Representative Warren Davidson told journalists, "I won’t waste my time listening to such nonsense because [Johnson] has no intention of doing anything but giving up.” When asked if Johnson should be dismissed from his leadership role, Davidson stated, “He should not have been given the role in the first place.” It appears he is not the only one holding this sentiment.

In earlier parts of the week, Representative Chip Roy was unwilling to assure that Johnson’s position was secure:

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Later, Roy mentioned that it was "on the table" to dismiss Johnson. On a Thursday, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene confirmed that the Speaker was at risk of losing his position.

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Speaking to CNN, Rep. Tim Burchett, mentioned “If the Speaker Johnson does not fulfill the conservative promises he made to us, then we will likely be searching for a new Speaker.”

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Nevertheless, not everyone agrees with the idea of replacing another Speaker in less than four months. Reflecting on the possibility of his counterparts doing such a thing, Representative Don Bacon expressed on Thursday, “That’s probably one of the stupidest things I’ve heard. It’s madness.”