Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) said that Ukraine aid, which he is opposed to, is going to pass, but he is not on board with booting Mike Johnson yet.
Washington Post National Security reporter John Hudson posted:
Just spoke with Matt Gaetz, who just got off the phone with Speaker Johnson. Gaetz said he now anticipates that Ukraine aid will pass — an outcome he has long sought to avoid. He expressed dismay given his influential role in delaying aid thus far. “This was abject surrender.”
When asked if he would seek to oust Johnson, Gaetz said he continues to harbor “concerns that a motion to vacate” will result in a Democratic speaker of the House.
The motion to vacate only works if Democrats vote against the speaker. The motion to vacate worked against Kevin McCarthy because McCarthy lied to Democrats, cut them out of the process, and thought he could appease the MAGAs to stay in power.
Mike Johnson views Democrats as the enemy in a civil war, but he at least understands that he needs Democratic votes to get anything done, and has no problem with relying on Democratic votes to keep the speakership.
Gaetz’s concerns about the motion to vacate resulting in a Democratic speaker have some validity. The Republican majority will soon be down to one vote, which means that all it would take to elect Hakeem Jeffries speaker would be for a couple of House Republicans to tire of the chaos and be willing to join with Democrats in a coalition House.
The Putin GOP will soon take a big loss, which is democracy, the United States, and the people of Ukraine.
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