Neocon Dem Plays Russia Card, Accuses Fellow Reps of ‘Emboldening’ Moscow by Trying to Oust Johnson
17:50 GMT 21.04.2024 (Updated: 16:49 GMT 09.05.2024)
© AP Photo / Alex Brandon
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A group of conservative Republican lawmakers furious over GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson’s willingness to cooperate with neocons demanding additional US support for foreign forever wars joined forces to push for the speaker’s resignation ahead of a vote Saturday to approve $95 billion in additional US assistance for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
Democratic Representative Jared Moskowitz went on TV on Sunday to accuse his fellow House lawmakers Marjorie Taylor Greene, Thomas Massie and Paul Gosar of acting in the interests of America’s adversaries by trying to remove House Speaker Johnson from his seat.
“What Marjorie Taylor Greene and what Thomas Massie and what Paul Gosar are trying to accomplish by removing the speaker of the House at this very moment, after October 7, would only embolden China, it would embolden Russia, it would only embolden Iran,” Moskowitz told Fox News Sunday.
“She’s not a serious legislator, quite frankly,” Moskowitz said of Greene. “That’s why I think the way we’ve been treating her now is she is Putin’s special envoy to Congress. The idea that she would criticize anybody else that somehow we’re not respecting America – the way you disrespect America is not by [sic] standing by our allies, not strengthening us,” the lawmaker added, referring to Greene’s comments on the House floor bashing Democrats and some of her fellow Republicans for supporting new foreign adventurism while ignoring ordinary Americans’ concerns at home.
“This is the sellout of America today. When we had members of Congress in there waving the Ukrainian flag on the United States House of Representatives floor while we’re doing nothing to secure our border, I think every American in this country should be furious,” Greene told reporters following Saturday’s vote.
Greene appeared on a separate Fox News segment Sunday, reiterating her call on Johnson to quit.
“Mike Johnson’s speakership is over. He needs to do the right thing, to resign and allow us to move forward in a controlled process. If he doesn’t do so, he will be vacated,” the Georgia congresswoman said, referencing the motion she filed in March to vacate the speakership.
Greene has since been joined by Representative Massie of Kentucky and Representative Gosar of Arizona in her bid to boot Johnson from office. But after Saturday’s passage of nearly $100 billion in new assistance to US allies and clients abroad, some Democrats, including members of the party’s so-called progressive wing like Ro Khanna, have indicated that they would vote to keep Johnson at the helm if pressed.
“He did the right thing here and he deserves to keep his job to the end of this term,” Khanna told ABC’s This Week on Sunday.
Gosar blasted House Democrats and Republicans who voted for new aid to Ukraine, telling Sputnik on Sunday that Congress seems more eager to “waste” taxpayer money by sending it to a “corrupt” country abroad than to help solve issues ordinary Americans care about, like inflation, illegal immigration, energy costs, dilapidated infrastructure, a $34 trillion debt and a homelessness crisis among vets.
“To say that I’m very unhappy that these politicians seem to want to help every single country except America is an understatement. I am beyond angry. It’s long past time we put America first,” Gosar said.
Ukraine aid passed the House 311 to 112 during Saturday’s vote, with Israel aid passing 366 to 58, Taiwan assistance passing 385-34, and a proposed TikTok ban and new sanctions on Iran passing 360-58. Ukraine proved the most divisive vote of the session, with Democrats voting unanimously in favor, but 112 Republicans voting against further assistance, and Greene introducing an amendment to remove Ukraine aid from the agenda entirely. The congresswoman ended up voting no on the whole package of legislation, and was joined by Paul Gosar, Thomas Massie, Andy Biggs, Matt Gaetz, Chip Roy, Lauren Boebert, Andrew Clyde, Eli Crane, Bob Good, Troy Nehls, Ralph Norman, and Matt Rosendale.
The House foreign aid package will now advance to the House, which expects to vote on it as early as Tuesday, after which it will end up on President Biden’s desk for signature. Virginia Senator Mark Warner told Face the Nation on Sunday that if all goes to plan, the US could resume arms deliveries to Ukraine by the end of the week.
