Oklahoma Congressman says proposal to oust House Speaker is counterproductive

U.S. Fourth District Congressman Tom Cole said a proposal to oust the House Speaker is counterproductive.

The Oklahoma Republican was responding to plans announced by U.S. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, to introduce action this week to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson. Greene has been making the threat for weeks, but said last week she would introduce her action in the House sometime this week (she has not specified a date).

In a statement, Cole said Greene’s motion to vacate has not been brought up.

“However, Congress has important work to do. Right now is not the time to oust our Speaker, as it is counterproductive and will only create chaos during a time when we must work together to defend our nation both at home and abroad,” he said in a statement.

Democrats and Republicans have been critical of Greene’s proposal, which she said she made because Johnson is not capable of doing his job. Greene has been especially critical of Johnson for going against what she said were GOP stances on an aid package for Ukraine and government funding bills. She originally filed a motion to oust Johnson in March, but said May 1 she would formally introduce the action this week.

Legislators on both sides of the aisle have said the House didn’t function for three weeks during actions to remove former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023, and they couldn’t afford to do that again.

Last week, Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Democrats would not support the motion if it came to a vote, with Democratic leadership saying they would continue to push back against MAGA extremism. Many Republicans have said they would not support the effort, and GOP leadership has indicated it will “quickly take up and kill the motion” if it comes to the floor.

Those members said while a House member can introduce a motion to vacate, a motion to table or kill the motion also can be introduced, with passage based on a simple majority vote.