WASHINGTON — As Speaker Mike Johnson gathered House Republicans behind closed doors Wednesday to sell the spending deal he reached with Democrats, one thing quickly became clear: many GOP lawmakers weren’t buying it.
Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio left early, saying he’d had enough.
“I’m not going to sit there and listen to that drivel, because he has no plans to do anything but surrender,” Davidson said.
In the afternoon, 13 Republicans refused to support a routine procedural vote setting the stage for considering three GOP-led bills. A similar
revolt occurred in June when, for the first time in some 20 years, such a routine vote was defeated, essentially grinding the House to a halt.
“We needed to send a message that what’s going on with this announced agreement is unacceptable,” said Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., the chairman of House Freedom Caucus, made up many of the House’s most conservative lawmakers.
House Republicans are off to a raucous start in their first week back in Washington after an extended holiday break. The open criticism of the speaker and the parliamentary standoff reflects deep divisions within the party that have continued despite new leadership, raising questions about his ability to unite the conference.
Most Republicans are still voicing support for Johnson, saying he is doing the best he can with such a slim majority and Democrats in control of the Senate and White House. But it took only eight Republicans to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker last year — along with 208 Democrats. A similar revolt from just a handful of Republicans would leave Johnson vulnerable as well.
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