House Speaker Mike Johnson said Friday it would be a "dangerous gambit" for the House to approve Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's motion to vacate against him, and said that Democrats who have said they will not pass the motion to oust him are looking "pragmatically" at the issue because the "world's on fire."
"I think what they're looking at very pragmatically is that we don't need another three weeks where we functionally close the government because we don't have a speaker in place," the Louisiana Republican said on SiriusXM's "The Laura Coates Show." "Vacating the chair right now would be a dangerous gambit."
Greene, R-Ga., said Wednesday she plans to force a vote next week on ousting Johnson, an effort that is expected to fail after Democrat leaders said they would vote to protect the speaker and after several other GOP leaders, including former President Donald Trump, said they oppose removing Johnson.
"We've got hot wars everywhere," Johnson told show guest host Alice Stewart. "We've got challenges here at home, unrest on college campuses, an open border, all the rest. And so they're looking at that and saying, 'you know, the damage would be so consequential.' "
Johnson further confirmed that Trump has his back and said that he expects the former president to win in November.
"He has his big donor retreat this weekend," said Johnson. "He's asked me to come and speak. I'm looking forward to that. I have a long relationship with President Trump. For eight years now we've worked together very closely. He and I came to Washington the same year, January 2017. Nothing's been normal since then, as we all know."
He also insisted that he did not request the Democrats to refuse to vote to oust him, even if it means they "may need to hold their nose[s] and support a conservative Republican. I'm being called the most conservative Republican that's ever held the gavel of the speaker."
Meanwhile, Johnson said he doesn't think "too much" about Greene's motion to vacate, but he does think it's "wrong for the Republican Party" and the country.
"These are very serious times that we're living in and the American people need and deserve a functioning Congress," he said. "I think that is the prevailing factor here. I think we are moving the ball forward incrementally."
He noted that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich wrote in an opinion piece that Johnson has the toughest speakership since the Civil War, as Republicans only hold a one-vote margin.
"What that means is, as Republicans, as conservatives, we only control one-half of one-third of the federal government," said Johnson. "Progressive Democrats control the White House and the Senate right now, so this is not a time for us to be able to throw Hail Mary passes on the field."
He added that he's "bullish" on the election cycle and believes Republicans can strengthen their majority in the House.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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