Outgoing Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is reportedly plotting a parting blow to wreak fresh hell on an old foe in her party ranks.
The Georgia Republican, due to quit Congress in January, has made no secret of her tense relationship with Speaker of the House and Trump mega-crony Mike Johnson.
She has called for his head in the past, and now, as a last act, she’s scheming to bring about his downfall, according to MS NOW. Three anonymous sources said she has been quietly trying to garner support for a motion to oust him as speaker.
Nine Republicans are needed to vacate the chair, and Greene is reportedly considering who would be willing to sign up. “Marjorie is approaching members to get to nine who will oust the speaker,” one of the sources said. “And if we don’t get to work on codifying Trump’s agenda, anything can happen.”
Greene told MS NOW that she was “not doing interviews on this right now.”
“I’m not interested in participating in your story,” she added, repeatedly asserting that the sources’ claims were “not true.”
And even if she was secretly wringing her hands, the sources said her efforts would probably fail. Time constraints and the fact that she would need eight brave souls to defy Johnson (and, in turn, President Trump) weigh heavily against her.
Even as she denies friction, however, her exchanges with Johnson suggest otherwise. She publicly opposed his shutdown strategy, pressed him on the absence of a Republican health care proposal, and this week called him out for marginalizing Republican women.
She told CNN on Tuesday: “You’re seeing Republican women lash out directly at the speaker because he sidelines us and doesn’t take us seriously.”
Reports of a female mutiny in the House have piled up in recent days. A New York Times report from earlier this month said Greene, along with Reps. Elise Stefanik, Nancy Mace, and Anna Paulina Luna, are fed up with the Louisiana congressman.
Stefanik went as far as to tell The Wall Street Journal this week that she didn’t believe Johnson would “have the votes to be speaker if there was a roll call vote tomorrow.”
“I believe that the majority of Republicans would vote for new leadership,” Stefanik said. “It’s that widespread.”
An NBC report echoes this feeling, citing two House Republican women who said, anonymously, that they are losing faith.
Much of the frustration stems from Johnson’s leadership during the government shutdown, which at 43 days became the longest in U.S. history. His handling of the Epstein files has also attracted criticism from both sides of the aisle.
MS NOW also cited two unnamed Republicans who were frustrated with the speaker. One anonymous lawmaker said there had been discussions about vacating his position, adding that “several Republicans are mad at Johnson.”
Another said they were growing weary of his “closed rule bull---t,” referring to the process by which party leaders bring bills to the floor without allowing any changes to be made.
However, if Greene is to spearhead Johnson’s ouster, she will need to hurry. She has just six more legislative days to force a vote before Congress breaks for the holidays. She officially departs on Jan. 5.
The report of fresh trouble brewing comes after Greene issued a stark warning to Trump earlier this week, amid their high-profile divorce. During a CBS News interview, Greene said the president’s refusal to address the economic realities facing many Americans could cost the GOP its majority next year.
“I do believe at this time that Republicans will lose the midterms, and I think that’s unfortunate,” Greene said.
Johnson has been contacted for comment.
