WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., still holds the gavel after a Republican-led attempt to oust him failed Wednesday.

What You Need To Know

  • Rep. Thomas Massie, R-La., co-sponsored a motion that could have removed Speaker Mike Johnson from leadership 

  • Massie was the only Kentucky member who voted to move forward with the attempt to oust Johnson 

  • All other Kentucky lawmakers voted in favor of tabling, or setting aside, the motion to vacate  

  • The House voted 359-43 to table the motion 

The threat to remove him from leadership had loomed over the House for weeks, but when it came down to a vote, it was over in minutes.

Only 10 other Republicans sided with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., in favor of moving ahead with a vote on Johnson’s removal.

"Today has proven the 'uniparty' is alive and well and the Democrats now control Speaker Johnson," Taylor Greene said, following the 359-43 vote on a motion to table, or set aside, Taylor Greene’s motion.  

Rep. Thomas Massie, who co-sponsored Taylor Greene’s motion to vacate, was the only Kentucky member who voted to move forward with the attempt to oust Johnson.

He’s criticized Johnson’s role in blocking an amendment to require a warrant for surveillance of foreign terrorism suspects and for his work with Democrats on a $95 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Lexington, who supports the Speaker, dismissed the matter as a "minor inconvenience."

"Creating chaos is not in the interest of our country and the American people want grownups running the Congress, not temper tantrums that sidetrack the work of the American people," he said.

It’s not clear if Johnson’s opponents will try again, but Massie said he and Taylor Greene did the right thing.

"I have some sympathy toward our colleagues who are lashing out at us right now because they’re going to go home and take an ass-whipping from their base because they voted wrong here tonight," Massie said.

Massie posted Thursday on social media that a political action committee had announced an ad buy against him and asked for donations for his race in the primary election later this month.

Patrick Dorton, a spokesperson for the pro-Israel AIPAC-affiliated super PAC, the United Democracy Project, said the ad was not about the primary election or the attempt to oust Johnson and that "we want to make sure that no matter what office Tom Massie runs for in the future that every voter knows about his anti-Israel record."

Massie posted on social media that he’s "often the lone Republican for freedom of speech, against foreign aid, and opposed to wars in the Middle East."

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