I looked around for a link to the five-page memo Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene sent to her colleagues Tuesday morning but, so far, I have been unable to locate one. Based on the news reports I’m seeing, she really laid into Speaker Mike Johnson, presenting a point-by-point case for why he completely sucks at his job. From appearances, she’s prepping the field to execute a motion to vacate the chair, which is the procedure that was used by Rep, Matt Gaetz to oust Speaker Mike McCarthy in 2023.

As you know, as soon as I saw the results of the midterm elections, I announced that the Republicans had not won a functional majority and that they would be forced to use Democratic votes to pay our bills on time and to avoid a government shutdown. For this reason, I suggested the Democrats seek to find a compromise Speaker who would serve as the leader of this functional majority. But the Democrats preferred to let the Republicans twist in the wind. First, the Dems watched with glee while McCarthy struggled to win the votes to become Speaker. Then they refused to rescue him when he was challenged, which was just desserts for McCarthy acting as if he was the leader of a partisan Republican majority rather than a mostly Democratic bipartisan caucus of bill-payers and appropriators. Finally, the Dems didn’t lift a finger as the Republicans found it nearly impossible to settle on a successor to McCarthy.

When the Republicans finally landed on the far right Mike Johnson of Louisiana, the Dems simply went about their business, forcing Johnson to bypass his own Rules Committee so that he could pass bipartisan legislation mostly supported by his political opponents. This wasn’t really a choice for Johnson anymore than it was a choice for McCarthy. It’s just math. The caucus that pays the bills and passes the spending bills is the true majority, and that majority is made up of a very large plurality of Democrats. The alternative for McCarthy and Johnson was never to be tougher negotiators. It was national credit default and an endless, fruitless government shutdown.

I don’t know how much of this Taylor Greene truly understands. But she acts like the conservatives have been betrayed when they’ve actually just put impossible demands on their leaders. What I think is clear though is that she is a Russian agent, or at least indistinguishable from one, who is most concerned that Russia subjugate Ukraine. Therefore, she threatened to make a motion to vacate the chair after Johnson passed appropriations bills, but she will only actually pull the trigger if he puts a bill funding Ukraine on the floor. She is from the Michael Flynn wing of the Kremlin/GOP, and the Democrats will probably have to decide whether to save Johnson or let him go down like McCarthy.

It’s not the easiest call, actually. But there’s also a question of whether Johnson would even be willing to serve as the formal leader of a Democratic caucus. Because, to be clear, if he needs Democratic votes to be Speaker, then he’ll no longer be the leader of the House Republicans, even if most of them vote for him. In a way, not much would have to change. He’s already suspending the rules to work with the Democrats. But as a bipartisan Speaker, he’d be answerable to the Democrats who saved him. In truth, the Dems shouldn’t even make the offer without a power sharing agreement in hand. But it could be that rewarding him from funding Ukraine makes sense if he’s willing to become their poodle.

I’m not sure how this will shake out but at least Matt Gaetz senses what I am suggesting.

It is not clear whether Ms. Greene’s arguments will persuade her colleagues, including some other hard-right members who have voiced skepticism about a second move to oust a speaker. Representative Matt Gaetz, the Florida Republican who led the charge to remove Mr. McCarthy, for instance, said that when he made his move in October, “I made a promise to the country that we would not end up with a Democrat speaker.” With the Republican majority in the House having dwindled down to one precarious vote since then, Mr. Gaetz said, “I couldn’t make that promise again today.”

In her letter, Ms. Greene said that would not happen unless more Republicans retired and the party lost its majority, or Republicans voted for Representative Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat of New York and the minority leader.

It’s not true that this is likely to result in Jeffries becoming Speaker. Either the Democrats save Johnson with whatever conditions that entails, or some bipartisan compromise Speaker is chosen (probably a moderate Republican acceptable to the Dems) or the Republicans unanimously elect another Speaker to replace Johnson, although that may prove impossible with no votes to spare.

It’s a mess, but should at least provide entertainment.