During an appearance on ABC News’ “This Week,” Democratic Representative Ro Khanna of California expressed his support for Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson. Khanna stated that he would oppose any motion to remove Johnson from his position following the approval of additional foreign aid funding. The discussion centered around the House’s approval of a foreign aid package presented by Johnson, which included additional funding for Ukraine.
ABC host Jonathan Karl asked Khanna if Johnson deserved credit for the outcome of the foreign aid approval, and Khanna acknowledged the Republican lawmaker’s role. Not only did Khanna commend Johnson for his actions, but he also expressed his belief that other progressive Democrats would stand by Johnson as well.
“He does. Look, we came into Congress together, and he always cared about civility. He actually led the civility pledge. We had one issue, which was give individual votes, don’t lump things together. I give him credit for doing this. I would actually vote to table any motion to vacate him. Chairman [Michael] McCaul quoted Churchill. One of the things Churchill said is that America always exhausted every wrong option before doing the right thing, and this shows that American democracy is very strong,” Khanna stated.
“Okay, you just said something significant. You said you would table the motion to vacate. In other words, you will protect Speaker Johnson’s job if Marjorie Taylor Greene and others go through with the threat to try to remove him?” Karl questioned.
“I would, though the end of the term. I expect Speaker Pelosi will be there in 2025. But look, I’m a progressive Democrat and I think you would have a few progressive Democrats doing that. I disagree with Speaker Johnson on many issues and I have been very critical of him, but he did the right thing here and he deserves to keep his job till the end of this term,” Khanna stated.
Last month, Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican Georgia Representative, filed a motion to vacate Johnson’s seat due to his role in bringing the $1.2 trillion spending bill to the House floor, which was subsequently passed. Despite Greene’s vocal opposition to the foreign aid package advocated by Johnson, the House adjourned without scheduling a vote on the matter. Greene later expressed her preference for allowing her colleagues to engage with their constituents on the issue first.
The new foreign aid package is expected to provide $95.3 billion in aid to countries such as Israel, Ukraine, Taiwan, and other American allies, with $60.8 billion allocated for Ukraine. Furthermore, $15 billion in military assistance, $9 billion in humanitarian aid for Israel, and $8 billion for Taiwan are included in the package.
