Posted on 05/01/2024 9:54:27 AM PDT by RandFan
MICHAEL WHATLEY, the newly installed RNC co-chair, had already briefed Greene’s fellow House Republicans on the importance of party unity that morning, but Greene didn’t show. He delivered his pointed message to her personally: Don’t move against Johnson.
“He said, one, this is not helpful, and two, we want to expand and grow the majority in the House,” said a person familiar with Whatley’s message to Greene. “He was clear that any disruption to the conference on these efforts — including filing this [motion to vacate], does not help the case for party unity.”
In another era, a directive from the top Republican party official certainly would not go unheeded by a House back-bencher. Even in this era, you would think Whatley’s status as DONALD TRUMP’s handpicked RNC steward would mean something to a MAGA acolyte.
But Greene disagreed with Whatley, arguing that the party had time to rebound from a leadership switch before the election. And she admitted she’d spoken to Trump himself earlier in the day — leaving the impression that the former president had told her much the same as Whatley had.
The truth was, Greene had backed herself into a corner, and this morning, she’s facing a potential lose-lose situation: back down and look squishy or stand firm and risk a break with Trump.
At 9 a.m. she’s holding a news conference with fellow Johnson critic THOMAS MASSIE (R-Ky.), and her fellow Republicans are bracing for her to announce a vote on Johnson’s gavel as soon as this afternoon. If so, expect a quick vote to table.
Already her threats have taken a toll on her standing within the House Republican conference, where more and more lawmakers are growing tired of her self-aggrandizing antics, as our colleagues Jordain Carney and Olivia Beavers write.
They note, for instance, that Greene’s latest push comes as the GOP tries to take advantage of the campus unrest to make a messaging push on antisemitism. But, they write, instead of “going on the offense by attacking Democrats for insufficiently condemning pro-Palestinian protests on campuses, Republicans are now bracing for Greene to drag them into another internal fight that most of them would rather delay until after Election Day.”
The bigger issue is that Greene is defying not just her House colleagues, but also Trump and his hand-picked deputy, who made yesterday’s unusual face-to-face appeal.
Whatley told Playbook in a statement that “nothing is more important than party unity and ensuring that we are focused on beating JOE BIDEN and Democrats in November.”
Others in the Trump-aligned orbit are annoyed, to put it mildly, at Greene’s lack of political discipline. Some noted that she’d kept quiet in recent days until House Minority Leader HAKEEM JEFFRIES and other top Democrats made their backing of Johnson public yesterday morning — suggesting Greene got rope-a-doped into sparking another internecine fight.
“Fresh bait always finds a fish,” one senior GOP official told Playbook. “Jeffries throwing that out there, it’s chum in the water. Everyone knows what he did.”
Even though you stalk me, despite your demented hatred of me and all things conservative; even though you follow my every post - there is no need to lie.
You're not good at most things, even lying, and you look like the POS you are when you do.
Now boy; go post a link to where I said this BS of yours about Colorado.
People disagree on stuff. MTG is the only one standing for principle here, not politics.
I agree. Sad, but true. It speaks volumes about the Republican Party.
Ya know it’s true. Like I said, you will never get rid of that stink.
Hold it over Johnson until after the election and then vote whether to replace him. If we manage to take back several democrat seats in the election, then wait until the new Congress is seated in January to vote in a new Speaker.
If Republicans manage to remove Johnson now it will only take three RINOs to join with the democrats and elect a RINO or a democrat as the next Speaker.
You’ll figure out a way to rationalize it and support DJT.
I dont see how caving to them and letting them run the House in all but name is helpful
If the Democrats were "running the House in all but name" right now, we'd have court packing, new blue states, amnesty, and additional national voting laws that abet cheating.
I do disagree with Trump on this and said so the other day. Like I said yesterday I am so livid with anger over this betrayal I am even contemplating voting for RFK Jr. I supported Trump only because he claimed to be America First. Giving $100 billion to foreign nations when we are $35 trillion in debt is anything but America First. I’m seriously concerned that Trump may have quietly sold out to the neocons so that the deep state will get off his back. Does Trump support the Ukraine war now? If not why does he support giving them an insane amount of money? Trump needs to have pushback whenever he strays just like any other politician. Only the mindless Trump worshippers think otherwise.
You aren't considering the tidal wave of totalitarianism that would accompany a Dem speaker, including using the 14th Amendment to block Trump.
Meaningful opposition makes sense. Political suicide does not.
Yes, indeed there would be a tidal wave of totlitarian laws that would accompany a Democrat speaker. We can't risk that now.
And yes meaningful opposition to Johnson makes sense. Which is why when MTG says that Johnson is terrible and won't have the votes for speakership in the next, 119th Congress, I'm all for that.
But if she pushes the vacate button now, I'm out.
Okay, you're not to be taken seriously.
Unless you can vacate the entire republican House and replace them with actual Americans, these moves to replace The Speaker will accomplish nothing. The republican party is rotten to the core and has been for a long, long time.
Dems don’t have 3nough Senate Seats to break the Filabuster.
Whatever Never Trumper.
Besides abandoning Trump on this Johnson issue, tell us what else you don’t like about Trump.
You backstabbing POS.
I don’t take you or your simpleminded posts seriously either so I guess we’re even.
On the one had Johnson deserves to be shown the door. He is a traitor. But on the other hand there is nothing to gain right now from kicking him out. But there is something to lose. And that is losing control of what committees are in congress. So kicking him out is not worth it.
How many Republican senators do you trust not to join in with the final sell out of our country?
Okay, you're not to be taken seriously.
Jim is really no different that the AT's who repeatedly say they won't vote for Trump if he picks DeSantis. Or Nikki, Or etc.
Unless you can vacate the entire republican House and replace them with actual Americans, these moves to replace The Speaker will accomplish nothing. The republican party is rotten to the core and has been for a long, long time.
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Playing “musical chairs” with the Speaker this close to November is retarded politics.
Besides, the next Speaker will just be another Johnson/McCarthy/Boehner type anyway, so why waste the time & energy.
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