Donald Trump Questioned on Marjorie Taylor Greene's Rift With Mike Johnson

Former President Donald Trump on Friday said that he gets along well with both Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and House Speaker Mike Johnson amid Greene's push to oust the Republican leader.

The Georgia congresswoman has publicly criticized Johnson for working across the aisle with Democrats to put forth legislation on issues like foreign aid, and she recently filed a motion to remove him from his position as speaker.

During a joint press conference with Johnson at Mar-a-Lago, Trump was asked about Greene's motion.

The former president told reporters that he was "getting along very well with the speaker, and I get along very well with Marjorie."

"We have a speaker who was voted in, and it was a complicated process, and I think it's not an easy situation for any speaker," Trump continued. "I think he's doing a very good job."

The Context

Greene, the hard-right Republican from Georgia who has long praised Trump, stepped up her criticism of Johnson after the speaker worked with Democrats to pass a $1.2 trillion federal spending bill last month, which narrowly avoided a partial government shutdown.

The congresswoman filed a resolution to remove Johnson on the same day that the spending bill was passed, and has attacked her own party, which took control of the House after the 2022 midterms.

Trump told reporters on Friday that he was "sure" Greene understands his opinion of Johnson, adding, "she's a very good friend of mine."

He added later in the press conference that it was "unfortunate that people" bring up Greene's effort to oust Johnson "because right, now we have much bigger problems."

"The country is—we're a nation in decline," Trump continued, criticizing President Joe Biden's policies.

What We Know

Johnson has also faced backlash from other conservative lawmakers over his efforts to put forth a Ukrainian aid deal amid pressure from the White House and the Senate. Additional assistance for Ukraine has been stalled in Congress for months after Johnson sidelined a $95 billion bipartisan foreign spending deal that was passed by the Senate in February.

When asked during Friday's press conference if he would support a Ukrainian aid deal, Trump told reporters that House Republicans were looking at making any additional help "a form of a loan instead of just a gift," adding, "we keep handing out gifts of billions and billions of dollars."

"But much more importantly to me is the fact that Europe has to step up and they have to give money," Trump continued. "They have to equalize it. They don't equalize. I'm very upset about it."

The former president was repeatedly critical of NATO during his first term, and recently faced backlash after suggesting that he would "encourage" Russia to "do whatever the hell they want" to countries who do not meet the alliance's minimum spending requirements. Members of NATO are required to spend 2 percent of their country's gross domestic product on their military, a target set by the alliance during a 2014 summit.

Views

A number of experts told Newsweek earlier this week that Greene and Trump's differing opinions on House leadership would likely result in the congresswoman backing down from her fight against Johnson.

"Mike Johnson faces a serious threat from the right wing of the GOP in the House, but his fate rests not on the calls to oust him from Marjorie Taylor Greene, but on whether he maintains the support of Donald Trump," Mark Shanahan, associate professor in politics at the University of Surrey in the U.K., said. "Taylor Greene acts on whatever Donald Trump tells her to do."

Heath Brown, associate professor of public policy at City University of New York, also told Newsweek that Greene was "highly unlikely" to succeed in her effort to oust Johnson, given Republicans' slim majority in the House.

"I don't think her Republican colleagues see any upside to backing her efforts on this before the November election," Brown added.

Greene told CNN on Thursday that she had recently spoken to Trump about her effort to remove Johnson but declined comment on how the conversation went, adding, "I don't speak for the president."

When asked about Johnson's planned news conference with Trump, Greene told CNN, "Things like that don't bother me."

Newsweek reached out to Greene's office via email for comment Friday evening.

What's Next?

Greene reiterated her criticism for Johnson after the House voted to extend a surveillance law—the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act—on Friday, comparing the speaker to Democratic Representative and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Johnson voted against an amendment to the bill that would have added a warrant requirement.

"I think that's going to tell a lot of people what I've been saying is true," Greene told reporters outside the Capitol after Friday's vote, referring to Johnson's decision to strike down the amendment. "So basically, what's the difference between Speaker Pelosi and Speaker Johnson?"

Update 04/12/24, 7:47 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and background.