Democrat floats rule change to prevent Speaker Johnson ouster

A centrist Democrat is reportedly floating a fail-safe measure to protect Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) from being ousted by members of his own conference. 

The resolution, sponsored by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), would amend House rules to require that a motion to vacate, the procedure used to depose Speaker Kevin McCarthy, receives the support of Republican or Democratic Party leadership before being brought to the floor, according to a copy of the legislation obtained by Axios.

The proposal, if it came to pass, would give Johnson some breathing room as he navigates bipartisan legislation related to government spending and foreign aid that has sparked backlash from hard-line conservatives. 

Under the current rules, any one member can propose a motion to remove the House speaker. That rule was agreed to by McCarthy to garner enough support to secure the gavel himself — before being ousted just nine months later. 

Although Johnson was elevated to the position with a unanimous vote within the GOP conference, the new speaker has since faced threats of his own to be ousted from the top position. 

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) speaks with reporters on Capitol Hill, Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)

Shortly after McCarthy’s removal, several Republicans floated the idea of changing House rules to make it more difficult to remove the House speaker. However, those proposals have failed to materialize four months into Johnson’s speakership. 

The resolution comes as Johnson faces pressure from both parties to put bipartisan legislation on the floor to provide aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. But doing so could spell doom for the speaker, as some lawmakers have already threatened a motion to vacate if Ukraine aid gets a vote.

Johnson may also face other threats as Congress nears its next shutdown deadline on March 1, which will likely require some bipartisan deal to keep the government open. 

It’s not clear how much support there is among Democrats to give Johnson a safety net, especially after all Democrats voted in favor of booting McCarthy last year. However, only a handful would likely need to vote to save him, and several lawmakers have reportedly expressed interest in avoiding a repeat of last fall. 

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Johnson, for his part, has expressed confidence in his leadership position. 

“I don’t think I’m in any jeopardy of being ‘vacated,’” Johnson told Fox News last month. “It’s not something I walk around and think about.”

The Washington Examiner contacted a spokesperson for Gottheimer but has not received a response.