Ocasio-Cortez says Democrats won’t save Johnson ‘for free’

Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) on Sunday said Democrats will not vote to save Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) from being ousted “for free” after Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) filed a motion to vacate the Speakership last week.

Several of the New York progressive’s Democratic colleagues indicated they could be willing to help rescue the Speaker from a motion to vacate, especially if he moves Ukraine aid. Ocasio-Cortez said Sunday that her support for the Speaker would have a price.

“I think that Democrats, we work as a team. I am not inclined to vote for a Speaker Johnson. I am not inclined to vote for an individual — for speaker — who doesn’t believe in women’s rights, doesn’t believe in bodily autonomy, who has supported overturning a presidential election,” Ocasio-Cortez said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“My vote would most likely be for a Speaker [Hakeem] Jeffries [D-N.Y.], which becomes an increasingly likely reality day after day as Republicans pursue further midterm resignations. But I think, for those of us and for any Democrat inclined, I don’t think we do that for free,” she continued.

Greene took the first step toward ousting Johnson after the House passed a spending package to avert a partial government shutdown, just hours before Friday’s midnight deadline. The package had votes from both sides of the aisle, but it angered House conservatives.

Greene indicated last week she would not immediately trigger a vote on ousting Johnson, calling the motion “basically a warning.” She noted she could force a referendum on his standing in the House in the future.

Some House Democrats said last week they might be open to rescuing Johnson from the motion to oust him, though some it will depend on how he handles Ukraine aid.

The potential for another Speaker’s ousting comes just months after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif) — who has since retired from Congress — was booted from the post. Nearly three weeks of chaos followed McCarthy’s ousting and some Democrats appear more open to helping avoid a repeat.

But Ocasio-Cortez argued Democratic support for Johnson should not be “out of sympathy” for the Republican conference.

“I don’t think we do that out of sympathy for Republicans. I think the realities of governance is there, we want to make sure that governance continues and that responsible governance continues and that tends to happen under a Democratic majority,” she said Sunday.

The Hill reached out to Johnson’s office for comment.

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