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Post by Webster on Apr 11, 2024 11:02:47 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Johnson suffered embarrassing defeat over surveillance bill after Trump calls to 'kill' itThe joint press conference between Mike Johnson and Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago tomorrow will come just two days after the former president called on Republicans to kill legislation the speaker put forward to extend a controversial surveillance law. Trump had urged House GOP members to reject a reauthorization of the law, Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa), ahead of the key procedural vote on Wednesday. “KILL FISA,” Trump posted to Truth Social. As a result, a faction of far-right House conservatives banded together to block the law from coming to the House floor, throwing the chamber into chaos once again. The Fisa vote was an embarrassing defeat for Johnson, and the fourth time in his tenure that the House has defeated a rule vote. Asked about Trump’s role in the reauthorization process, Johnson told reporters: I’ll just say that it’s never helpful for the majority party to take down its own rules. What it does ultimately is it weakens our hand in negotiations with the Senate and the White House, so it’s not a good development.
Mike Johnson’s embarrassing defeat over the Fisa bill and the threat of an intra-party revolt over a Ukraine aid package leaves Johnson, six months into his speakership, in a similar place as his predecessor Kevin McCarthy, who was unceremoniously voted out last fall. After the Fisa vote on Wednesday, Johnson held a closed-door meeting of House Republicans but there was no breakthrough after more than an hour, NBC News reported. The speaker later told reporters: We will regroup and reformulate another plan.
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Post by Webster on Apr 12, 2024 13:09:54 GMT -5
(The Guardian) House votes on Fisa reauthorizationThe Republican-led House is voting on the reauthorization of section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, controversial legislation that is also being seen as a crucial test for the House speaker, Mike Johnson. The House’s vote comes after rightwing Republicans – and Democrats – blocked the chamber’s consideration of the bill on Wednesday, which seeks to expand intelligence officials’ warrantless surveillance of communications between Americans and foreigners abroad. With House Republicans divided over Fisa, Johnson, who supports it, is currently in a precarious position surrounding his leadership. “We cannot allow Section 702 of Fisa to expire. It’s too important to national security. I think most of the members understand that,” Johnson said. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has thrown his support behind hard-right Republicans, writing on Truth Social on Wednesday, “KILL FISA.”
A vote to amend Fisa’s section 702 to prohibit warrantless surveillance in the House has failed. The amendment, introduced by Arizona Republican representative Andy Biggs, failed after the yays and nays votes tied at 212-212.
A vote to amend Fisa’s section 702 to require the FBI to report to Congress on the number of queries conducted on Americans has passed. The amendment, introduced by Texas Republican representative Chip Roy, passed after 269 yays and 153 nays.
A vote to amend Fisa’s section 702 to update the definition of foreign intelligence to help target international narcotics trafficking has passed. The amendment, introduced by Texas Republican representative Daniel Crenshaw, passed after 268 yays and 152 nays.
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Post by Webster on Apr 12, 2024 13:11:47 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Fisa reauthorization passes in HouseThe House’s vote to reauthorize the Foreign Intelligence Service Act has passed. Following days of Republican infighting that has put House Republican speaker Mike Johnson’s leadership in a precarious position, FISA passed with a vote of 273 yays and 147 nays in the Republican-led chamber. The vote marks a win for Johnson who has come under fire from hard-right Republicans including Georgia’s representative Marjorie Taylor Greene over his support for FISA. Greene, who is opposed to FISA, has repeatedly threatened to oust Johnson as he has “not lived up to a single one of his self-imposed tenets.” With the vote’s passage, the reauthorization of FISA, specifically its amendments to section 702, allows for intelligence officials to expand their warrantless surveillance on electronic communications between Americans and foreigners abroad. Despite intelligence officials including FBI director Christopher Wray arguing that a warrant requirement would “blind ourselves to intelligence in our holdings,” civil rights organizations such as the ACLU has criticized the legislation. “Given our nation’s history of abusing its surveillance authorities, and the secrecy surrounding the program, we should be concerned that section 702 is and will be used to disproportionately target disfavored groups, whether minority communities, political activists, or even journalists,” it said. The bill is now en route to the Senate.
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Post by Webster on Apr 12, 2024 13:14:12 GMT -5
(The Guardian) The Republican congressman from Ohio, Warren Davidson, has responded to the House vote to reauthorize Fisa, calling it a “sad day’. From Punchbowl news’ Mica Soellner:
The House passed a two-year reauthorization of the nation’s warrantless surveillance program that had stalled earlier this week amid Republican resistance and after Donald Trump had urged GOP members to “kill” the law. In a 273 to 147 vote, lawmakers renewed section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (Fisa), which is set to expire on 19 April, through 2026. The bill now heads to the Senate, which is expected to give it bipartisan approval. Section 702 allows the US government to collect the communications of targeted foreigners abroad by compelling service providers to produce copies of messages and internet data, or networks to intercept and turn over phone call and message data. But the law is controversial because it allows the government to incidentally collect messages and phone data of Americans without a court order if they interacted with the foreign target, even though the law prohibits section 702 from being used by the NSA to specifically target US citizens. The White House, intelligence chiefs and top lawmakers on the House intelligence committee have warned of potentially catastrophic effects of not reauthorizing the program. Friday’s vote marks the fourth attempt to pass the bill, which was blocked three times in the past five months by House Republicans bucking their party. Earlier this week, House conservatives refused to support the bill that the speaker, Mike Johnson, put forward.
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Post by Webster on Apr 12, 2024 13:15:25 GMT -5
(The Guardian) House conservatives who had blocked the Fisa bill earlier this week amid a push from Donald Trump allowed it to move forward on Friday after striking a deal with the speaker, Mike Johnson. Under the agreement, the new version of the bill would be a two-year reauthorization of section 702 of Fisa, cut down from the original proposed five years. This would mean that if Trump won the presidential election this year, the legislation would be up in time for Trump to overhaul Fisa laws next time around. The far-right Florida Republican Matt Gaetz, speaking to CNN earlier today, said: We just bought President Trump an at bat. The previous version of this bill would have kicked reauthorization beyond the Trump presidency. Now President Trump gets an at bat to fix the system that victimized him more than any other American.
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or Fisa, which gives the government expansive powers to view emails, calls and texts, has long been divisive and resulted in allegations from civil liberties groups that it violates privacy rights. Section 702 has faced opposition before, but it became especially fraught in the past year after court documents revealed that the FBI had improperly used it almost 300,000 times – targeting racial justice protesters, January 6 suspects and others. That overreach emboldened resistance to the law, especially among far-right Republicans who view intelligence services like the FBI as their opponent. Debate over Section 702 pitted Republicans who alleged that the law was a tool for spying on American citizens against others in the GOP who sided with intelligence officials and deemed it a necessary measure to stop foreign terrorist groups. One proposed amendment called for requiring authorities to secure a warrant before using section 702 to view US citizens’ communications, an idea that intelligence officials oppose as limiting their ability to act quickly. Another sticking point in the debate was whether law enforcement should be prohibited from buying information on American citizens from data broker firms, which amass and sell personal data on tens of millions of people, including phone numbers and email addresses.
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Post by Webster on Apr 12, 2024 15:57:07 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Fisa bill's House passage proves a crucial victory for Mike JohnsonThe 273-147 bipartisan vote reauthorizing Fisa is a win for the embattled House speaker, Mike Johnson, and comes at a time when he faces direct challenges to his leadership. Johnson was seen on the House floor speaking to the far-right Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who last month filed a motion to remove Johnson from the speakership. Greene later told reporters she and Johnson spoke about “all sorts of things”, CNN reported. Johnson said he and Greene “agree on our conservative philosophy”, adding: We just have different ideas sometimes on strategy. The important part of governing in a time of divided government like we have is communication with members and understanding the thought process behind it, that they have a say in it.Johnson is also scheduled to meet with Donald Trump in Florida later on Friday.
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Post by Webster on Apr 12, 2024 15:58:12 GMT -5
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Post by Webster on Apr 16, 2024 12:57:44 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Second House Republican joins far-right effort to oust Mike JohnsonA second House Republican has joined the effort to oust the speaker, Mike Johnson, escalating the risk of another leadership election just six months after the Louisiana congressman assumed the top job. Congressman Thomas Massie, a Republican of Kentucky, announced on Tuesday that he would co-sponsor the motion to vacate resolution introduced last month by congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican of Georgia. “[Johnson] should pre-announce his resignation (as Boehner did), so we can pick a new Speaker without ever being without a GOP Speaker,” Massie said on X, formerly known as Twitter. The former House speaker John Boehner resigned from Congress in 2015 after a fellow Republican, then congressman Mark Meadows of North Carolina, filed a motion to vacate the chair. In October, Kevin McCarthy became the first speaker in history to ever be formally removed from his job via a motion to vacate vote. Speaking to reporters after a Republican conference meeting this morning, Massie predicted that Johnson would lose the vote on the motion and would become the second speaker to lose the gavel. Massie said: The motion is going to get called, and then [Johnson] is going to lose more votes than Kevin McCarthy.
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Post by Webster on Apr 16, 2024 12:59:16 GMT -5
(The Guardian) At a press conference on Tuesday, House speaker Mike Johnson remained defiant that he would not resign and accused his critics of undermining Republicans’ legislative priorities. “I am not resigning, and it is, in my view, an absurd notion that someone would bring a vacate motion when we are simply here trying to do our jobs,” Johnson said. It is not helpful to the cause. It is not helpful to the country. It does not help the House Republicans advance our agenda. Congressman Thomas Massie’s announcement comes one day after Johnson unveiled a plan to advance a series of foreign aid bills through the House, following months of inaction on the issue. In February, the Senate passed a $95bn foreign aid package, which included funding for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and humanitarian efforts. Johnson proposed splitting up the package into four separate bills with some notable changes, such as cutting the humanitarian aid included in the Senate proposal and sending money to Ukraine as a loan. The speaker plans to hold separate votes on the bills and then combine them into one package to simplify the voting process for the Senate, which will need to reapprove the proposal. The plan won some tepid praise from many members of the House Republican conference, but the plan to bundle the bills into one larger funding package sparked frustration among hard-right Republicans. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who had already indicated she might force a vote on the motion to vacate over the issue of Ukraine funding, said she would not support Johnson’s plan and echoed Massie’s suggestion that the speaker should resign.
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Post by Webster on Apr 29, 2024 12:17:41 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Will far-right Republicans seek revenge on Mike Johnson for Ukraine, surveillance votes?When the House gets back to work today, may find out whether Marjorie Taylor Greene’s push to remove Mike Johnson as speaker has any momentum. The Georgia congresswoman made the proposal more than a month ago, after the speaker worked with Democrats to pass government funding bills that Greene objected to. In the weeks since, he has again worked with the House minority to pass legislation approving aid to Ukraine and Israel, and reauthorizing a controversial surveillance law. Greene has continued tweeting her fury, but has not picked up much explicit support for removing Johnson so far. The only other lawmakers who have publicly signed on to the push are Kentucky’s Thomas Massie: And Arizona's Paul Gosar, When Kevin McCarthy was ousted as speaker last year, it took the votes of eight Republicans (a group that did not include Massie or Green) and all Democrats. While such a coalition could still come together among the GOP to boot Johnson, it would run up against another problem: Democrats may not be interested in removing from office a speaker who worked with them to pass government funding and foreign aid bills, both priorities for Joe Biden’s allies.
Politico has attempted to get a sense of just what Marjorie Taylor Greene plans to do, and when she plans to do it. They report that many senior House Republicans think Greene will ultimately drop her effort to boot Mike Johnson from the speaker’s chair, which drew a strong denial from a staffer to the Georgia congresswoman. “That’s absurd,” her deputy chief of staff Nick Dyer told Politico, while declining to elaborate on when Greene would act. He added: Anyone who is saying she is backing down is high, drunk, or simply out of their mind.
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Post by Webster on Apr 30, 2024 14:21:32 GMT -5
(The Guardian) House Democratic leaders announce opposition to attempt to remove Johnson as speakerThe top House Democrats, including minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, say they will oppose any attempt by congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene and other rightwing Republicans to remove Mike Johnson as the chamber’s speaker. Last month, Greene filed a motion to oust fellow Republican Johnson from his position as speaker of the House, citing his collaboration with Democrats to pass a government spending bill. In the weeks since, Johnson again worked with the House minority to approve legislation authorizing military aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, and reauthorize a controversial surveillance law. Greene, meanwhile, has picked up only two other co-sponsors to her motion to vacate the speaker’s chair, and it was unclear if she would continue with her campaign. “At this moment, upon completion of our national security work, the time has come to turn the page on this chapter of Pro-Putin Republican obstruction,” writes Jeffries along with Democratic whip Katherine Clark and caucus chair Pete Aguilar. “We will vote to table Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Motion to Vacate the Chair. If she invokes the motion, it will not succeed.” Their position was a reversal from October, when all Democrats joined with eight Republican insurgents to vote for Kevin McCarthy’s ouster as speaker – leading to Johnson’s ascension after weeks of GOP infighting.
The pledge by House Democratic leaders to save Mike Johnson’s speakerships caps a week of whiplash for the conservative, who won plaudits on the left for allowing a vote on Ukraine aid, then pivoted to insinuating that anti-Israel protests on college campuses were “backed” by Hamas. The Guardian’s David Smith has a recap of the wild few days Johnson has had: Democrat Nancy Pelosi cited his “integrity” and described him as “courageous”. Republican Michael McCaul called him a “profile in courage”. CNN hailed him as “an unlikely Churchill”. Mike Johnson, speaker of the House of Representatives, began the week showered in plaudits for leading the House in approving $95bn in urgently needed wartime aid for Ukraine, Israel and other US allies. It was widely noted that Johnson had done his homework, changed his mind, prayed for guidance and risked his job by facing down far-right extremists in his own party including Marjorie Taylor Greene, who had threatened to oust him if he helped Ukraine. But the chorus of praise-singers echoed past renditions when the likes of William Barr, Liz Cheney and Mitt Romney were valorised for doing the bare minimum by denouncing the serial liar and election denier Donald Trump. (Barr, incidentally, now says he will support Trump in November.) That is how low the bar is now set.
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Post by Webster on Apr 30, 2024 14:32:23 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Greene accuses Johnson of 'slimy back room deal' for Democratic support, hints at forcing vote on motion to vacateIn response to House Democratic leaders’ vow to oppose her effort to remove Mike Johnson as speaker, far-right congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene hinted she may force a vote on the matter. “What slimy back room deal did Johnson make for the Democrats’ support?” the Georgia lawmaker asked. She continued: If the Democrats want to elect him Speaker (and some Republicans want to support the Democrats’ chosen Speaker), I’ll give them the chance to do it. I’m a big believer in recorded votes because putting Congress on record allows every American to see the truth and provides transparency to our votes. Johnson denies collaborating with Democrats to defeat ouster attempt, says 'I have to do my job'At a press conference today, Republican speaker of the House Mike Johnson denied making a deal with Democrats to defeat a far-right attempt to remove him as the chamber’s leader: Rightwing congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who is behind the attempt to remove Johnson as speaker, accused him of a “slimy back room deal” with House Democrats after their leaders earlier today said they would not support Greene’s motion to vacate.
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Post by Webster on May 1, 2024 16:48:10 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Marjorie Taylor Greene to announce next move after Democrats intervene to protect speaker Mike JohnsonWe’re kicking the day off with a press conference from far-right Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who yesterday suffered a serious setback in her campaign to remove Mike Johnson as speaker of the House. The chamber’s top Democrats announced that they would oppose Greene’s effort, a reversal from just a few months ago, when the party was more than happy to lend its votes to the GOP insurgency that booted Kevin McCarthy from the speaker’s chair. But even before Democrats moved to protect Johnson – a staunch conservative who has lately worked with the minority party to pass bills dealing with foreign aid, government spending and a controversial surveillance law – Greene only had two known co-signers of her motion to vacate the speaker’s chair, which isn’t much. She yesterday accused Johnson of making a “slimy back room deal” for Democratic support, and hinted she might put her motion up for a vote anyway. The speaker, meanwhile, has said little about the drama. Greene’s press conference is scheduled for 9am ET outside the Capitol, and the Georgia lawmaker will be joined by Thomas Massie, one of her two colleagues supporting the effort. Far-right lawmakers accuse Johnson of belonging to 'uniparty'In the below tweet, Thomas Massie, one of two other House representatives known to be backing Marjorie Taylor Greene’s motion to vacate, accuses speaker Mike Johnson of belonging to the “uniparty”. Uniparty is a term that has become popular on the far right to describe Republicans working with Democrats – the allegation being that the two parties are essentially the same. Lawmakers like Massie would prefer that Johnson hold fast and reject compromises with Democrats, like the foreign aid bill that funded Ukraine’s defense, or the government funding legislation enacted in March that Greene seized on to begin her push to remove Johnson as speaker. Of course, there would have been consequences to holding up those two bills that could have harmed the GOP overall. If the government funding bills did not pass, Washington would have shut down, while if Ukraine did not receive more support, Russia could have made further battlefield gains. That could blow back on Republicans, particularly lawmakers in vulnerable seats – a group that does not include Greene or Massie. Massie goes on to accuse Johnson of receiving the endorsement of Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic minority leader.
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Post by Webster on May 1, 2024 16:48:52 GMT -5
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Post by Webster on May 1, 2024 16:50:25 GMT -5
(The Guardian) Marjorie Taylor Greene has begun her press conference outside the US Capitol, where she is expected to announce whether she will press on with her campaign to remove fellow Republican Mike Johnson as speaker of the House. She started off by reminding everyone of her affinity for Donald Trump: I was one of the Americans in 2016 that looked at a presidential stage of 17 Republican candidates, and the only one that stood out to me was Donald John Trump. The very man that stood out and represented Republican voters and Americans all over the country, that we’re sick and tired of a Republican establishment failing us over and over again. That’s why I supported him in 2016, that’s why I supported him in 2020, and that’s why I support him now.To make her point that the speaker is insufficiently loyal, the Georgia lawmaker spoke before photos of Johnson with Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic House minority leader.
Greene recounted how she went from supporting Mike Johnson as speaker to threatening to remove him from office. She blamed Johnson for the passage of a March government funding bill that “fully funded Joe Biden’s agenda”: So, I entered a motion to vacate but I didn’t call it for a vote. I was controlled. I was responsible. I was being conscious and caring about my conference in our majority. It was a warning to stop serving the Democrats. And support our Republican conference and support our agenda. And he didn’t do it.She then railed against Johnson for allowing a vote on the foreign aid package for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan: What’s when Mike Johnson fully joined the disgusting business model of Washington DC, to fund forever wars. Yeah, that’s what this is. The uniparty is make ‘Ukraine great again’. The uniparty is all about funding every single foreign war. They think this is the business model that needs to be done … Americans do not want to spend their hard-earned tax dollars to fund the murder and killing in foreign countries. They’re fed up with it, and they’re screaming it as loud as they possibly can.
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