An ouster of House Speaker Mike Johnson is "a matter of numbers" — but it's "not a great idea," Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., told Newsmax on Friday.
In an interview on "Wake Up America," Burchett said he's confident Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., will be able to determine if there's enough backing for a risky boot of the Louisiana lawmaker — but warned it'll come at a price.
"It's just a matter of numbers, really," Burchett said of a push by conservatives angry at Johnson for the compromise with Democrats on an aid package to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.
"Thomas Massie is a rocket scientist," Burchett said. "He went to MIT, he knows the numbers. And so I suspect he'll wait until he gets his numbers, and when he sees that, he will move ahead with it."
Burchett added, however, removal could backfire — and could "give the gavel over to the Democrats."
"I don't personally think it's a great idea, because I suspect what will happen is with the … few Republicans that are in Democratic districts … would probably [be] the easiest to cave, and they would vote for [Minority Leader] Hakeem Jeffries [D-N.Y.] … and I think the Marxist agenda would move fast."
Burchett called out conservatives pressing for an end to Johnson's tenure without rock-solid support, noting, "I don't know that they're going to do it or not. Until Massie has the numbers, I don't see him doing it."
Burchett also slammed the passage of an aid bill to Ukraine.
"They're going to say it's going to be some kind of loan, and you and I both know there's no loan," he complained. "We'll end up rebuilding their infrastructure ... no matter what happens."
"They've got no plan to victory … other than to take our money, and we don't really know where it's going," he charged, urging: "Let them fight it — that's what [former President Donald] Trump has said."
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Fran Beyer ✉
Fran Beyer is a writer with Newsmax and covers national politics.
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