Marjorie Taylor Greene vents frustration over the plan to shut down Speaker John Johnson on a private call with House Republicans
House Speaker Mike John Johnson and GOP rep. Georgia’s Marjorie Taylor Greene backtracked during a private call with House Republicans on Tuesday, according to one source on the state phone call.
Greene, who has publicly shied away from Johnson’s decision to keep the House out of state, took him to task for his criticism of the speaker and said he was out of touch with what the people wanted, the source said.
Johnson responded that it was useless to shoot inside the Republican tent, that the shutdown was a democratic mistake, and SAI president Donald Trump’s numbers were up, the source added.
A distraught Greene was “intensified” as he lashed out at his criticism, which was directed at GOP leaders for keeping the House out of a shutdown, according to one source on the call. Johnson, in his response, was ‘calm’ in his defense of the club’s decision.
The Louisiana Republican also told members that the pain of the shutdown was about to rise to the level of “10,” referring to the millions of Americans who could lose food aid in the coming weeks, and disrupt air travel and miss paychecks paid to federal workers.
Rep. Kevin Kehin Kiley from California also expressed frustration with the house not being in service, said a source on the phone.
Rep. Dan Crenshaw also complained that the house was not on schedule, the source said.
House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks with Majority Leader Steve Stude as they leave a news conference at the Capitol on October 28 in Washington, DC. – Chip SomoDevilla / Final Images
The criticism comes after weeks of deadlock in the House, and lawmakers mounted shutdowns in their districts after passing the first funding bill in late September. As the results of the fire have risen in the lives of many Americans, tensions have risen in the GOP House caucus, with some – like Greene and Kiley – looking for a clear plan in leadership.
The majority in Congress has always locked behind Johnson, arguing that the House cannot return to Washington until Democrats agree to reopen the government. But the GOP’s difficulties are evident – even among the leadership – as the shutdown drags on.
Greene later sent to X in response to the report by private phone, he said, “You left me to say that I cannot distribute Obamacare beyond all ObamaCare and ACA tax credits to make health insurance affordable for the American people.”
Democrats are calling on Republicans to negotiate with them an extension of funding for the Department of Labor that has expired, but Republican leaders have said the government must be reopened before any negotiations.
He added, “Johnson said, he has ideas and pages of policy goals and governance committees that he works on, but he refuses to give a single policy to our conference at our conference!!!”
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