Sources report that warring factions within the GOP have reached an agreement to increase the threshold for removing a House speaker.
Last year, Kevin McCarthy was removed from his position after he agreed to lower the motion to vacate threshold.
An agreement has been reached among House Republicans to increase the motion to vacate threshold, according to four sources familiar with the discussion, as reported by Planet Chronicle Digital.
The current House GOP Conference rule allows for a motion to vacate the chair to be called by just one lawmaker, resulting in a chamber-wide vote on removing the speaker.
The deal, negotiated during a meeting hosted by Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and attended by lawmakers from both the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus and the pragmatic Main Street Caucus, would increase the one-person threshold to nine.
House GOP rules that would have punished Republicans who vote against the will of the majority were withdrawn by Main Street Caucus members, according to sources.
In January 2022, ex-Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., reached a deal with conservatives to secure the gavel, which included a one-person threshold.
In October 2023, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.,'s vote led to his ouster by all House Democrats and eight Republicans, ultimately coming back to haunt him.
Since Mike Johnson became Speaker, there has been a threat hanging over his head.
In March, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., led a vote to remove Johnson from his position using the same rule. Despite the support of enough House Democrats, the Republicans were able to indefinitely postpone the vote by voting to "table" it.
Since late last year, moderate and rank-and-file Republicans have been advocating to increase the threshold, asserting that it would only exacerbate the turmoil within the House GOP.
House Republican leadership was not empowered by GOP hardliners, according to their insistence.
A fifth person who spoke with Planet Chronicle Digital stated that the deal was tentative, describing it as a "proposed" deal and emphasizing, "It isn't over until it is."
Proposed changes to House Republican conference rules will be voted on by the GOP on Thursday.
Two sources informed Planet Chronicle Digital that the news emerged following Johnson's unanimous re-election as House Republican speaker.
Johnson's critics threatened to delay his victory by forcing a secret ballot vote rather than giving him unanimous consent due to their concerns about his handling of foreign aid and government spending.
After the meeting, they appeared to back off from their threat, which delayed leadership elections by approximately an hour and a half.
Planet Chronicle Digital reached out to Johnson's office for comment.
politics
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