Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) said on Sunday that the bipartisan approval of a significant foreign aid bill in the House this week could benefit Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who is facing a removal threat from three members of his GOP conference.
When asked on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday with Chris Stirewalt” if he and other Democrats would assist in rescuing Johnson from a potential ousting, Ivey did not reveal his plans but acknowledged the progress made on Saturday.
“Well, I think we’ll have to see,” he answered. “But I thought that…Saturday was a good day. Especially with respect to Speaker Johnson working with Democratic leader [Rep.] Hakeem Jeffries [D-N.Y.]. The week before that, you had FIDA which was another bipartisan piece of legislation that was extremely important to get done.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-La.) launched a motion to remove Johnson from his role as Speaker last month due to his handling of Ukraine aid and government spending. Tensions escalated last week after Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) indicated their support for the motion.
The potential ousting remains unclear as Greene has not yet brought it to a vote or explained the conditions under which she might do so.
The House approved a foreign aid package on Saturday, which includes approximately $61 billion for Ukraine, $26 billion for Israel, $8 billion for allies in the Indo-Pacific, and a set of other national security measures, including a possible ban on the TikTok app.
Ivey contended that the bipartisan vote for the package on Saturday, combined with the reauthorization of the nation’s warrantless surveillance powers earlier this month, demonstrates progress.
“So, we may have hit a point where we’re able to get things done if we work together on a bipartisan basis going forward,” Ivey continued. “And almost everything of any important that’s gotten done in this Congress, whether it’s keeping the government open or paying up the United States debts…it’s all been done on a bipartisan basis. Democrats are willing to work with him and I think he showed that he worked with us, so that could be good.”
The foreign aid bill will now go to the Senate, which is expected to vote on it later this week.
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