Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Democrats are not going to support House Speaker Mike Johnson without getting something in return, adding that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries taking over is “increasingly likely.”
“My vote would most likely be for a Speaker Jeffries, which becomes an increasingly likely reality day after day, as Republicans pursue further midterm resignations,” Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, New York Democrat, said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
She added that she wouldn’t support someone who doesn’t support women’s rights.
Her comment came after the House on Friday passed a spending bill to prevent a government shutdown. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Republican, quickly filed a motion to have Mr. Johnson ousted from the speakership.
Some House Democrats have said they would support Mr. Johnson if a motion to vacate were to come up in order to avoid a repeat of the three weeks of chaos after former House speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted in October.
But Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said Democrats wouldn’t come together to support the Louisiana Republican “for free.”
“I don’t think that we do that out of sympathy for Republicans. And I think that the realities of governance are there. We want to make sure that that governance continues and that responsible governance continues, and that generally tends to happen under a Democratic majority,” she said.
Mr. Johnson’s survival as speaker could depend on how he votes on funding more aid for Ukraine’s war with Russia. Ms. Greene said last week that the motion she filed is “more of a warning.”
“I’m not saying that it won’t happen in two weeks or it won’t happen in a month or who knows when, but I am saying the clock has started,” Ms. Greene told reporters. “It’s time for our conference to choose a new speaker.”
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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