GOP members urge Johnson to swiftly change rules over vacating speakership

Speaker Mike Johnson is being lobbied by his members to raise the threshold required to trigger the procedure to oust the speaker, according to multiple GOP sources – a move that would help ensure the Louisiana Republican can pass foreign aid bills and still keep his job without needing to rely on Democrats to bail him out.

It’s unclear what Johnson will do, but members believe he is considering the change to the process known as the motion to vacate the chair, which would be a significant move by Johnson.

In recent days, rank-and-file House Republicans have privately encouraged Johnson to insert language into the text of a rule for the foreign aid bills to alter the motion to vacate and make it harder for any single member to use.

Currently, any single member can force a floor vote on the motion to vacate — part of the deal Kevin McCarthy made to become speaker last year.

News that Johnson was being lobbied to raise the threshold was first reported by Punchbowl News.

The House Rules Committee is scheduled to meets Thursday morning to begin considering the foreign aid bills. Text of the rule will be unveiled after the committee approves it, which is expected later in the day.

Democrats will be needed in that committee vote, and on the floor, to advance the rule, given hardliner opposition.