Friday began with House conservatives holding a press conference to trash the $1.2 trillion spending bill their leaders negotiated with Democrats, sparking some fears about its prospects.
It squeaked through — requiring 67% of the House, it ended up winning 68% — but a majority of Republicans voted against it.
It was just the first headache of the day for House Republicans as they adjourned for a two-week recess, offering a distillation of the infighting and disenchantment that continues to plague the party 15 months into its narrow majority. Things were about to get worse.
Moments later, far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., shocked her colleagues by filing a motion to overthrow Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., blasting his stewardship of the chamber and threatening renewed turmoil at the helm of her party.
It is less about being on the fence versus being motivated to actually go vote. Most people are like “whatever”, and “my vote doesn’t matter anyhow” and “if I vote, I’m going to get jury duty”. If the politicians can’t get people to vote, they lose.