Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) has submitted a privileged motion to remove Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) from the chair, which will require a vote within two legislative days. It is expected that Johnson will move to table the motion, effectively ending it, and this vote only requires a simple majority. However, House rules do not prevent Greene or any other lawmaker from forcing additional votes, and their intentions remain unknown if the motion is killed.

Despite assurances from Johnson-friendly media outlets, Johnson’s future is uncertain. Some Republicans, even those who will vote against removing Johnson, may vote against tabling the motion on principle. Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH) has announced his intention to do so, although he has not disclosed his stance on the motion to vacate itself. Greene took action on Wednesday after nearly two months of warnings for Johnson to end his coalition government with Democrats, during which Johnson pushed forward President Joe Biden’s priorities into law.

Although the motion was anticipated for a long time, its inevitability seemed to diminish this week as Greene and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) met with Johnson for a total of three hours on Monday and Tuesday to discuss a way forward. The pair proposed four accountability measures to ensure that the Speaker would not pursue an agenda opposed by a majority of Republicans, including halting further American funding of Ukraine’s distant war. Johnson had previously stated that he was listening to their proposals but insisted it was not a negotiation. However, on Tuesday evening, Johnson’s demeanor seemed to change as he expressed frustration about lack of sleep and appeared dismissive when asked if he would provide Greene with an answer soon.

Prior to Johnson’s offensive outburst, the two conservatives had emphasized that they had presented Johnson with an opportunity to “return home” to the Republican Party, which had propelled him to the speakership. However, they expressed their exhaustion with mere talk and demanded action from the Speaker.

According to reports, Greene and Massie advocated this week for Johnson to advocate for the inclusion of certain conservative priorities, such as defunding the special counsel’s “lawfare” that was plaguing Trump, in the essential Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) reauthorization bill. While the House spent the week considering legislation like the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act, Johnson had relinquished control over the FAA bill to the Senate.

Unexpectedly, on Wednesday afternoon, Johnson scheduled a vote on a one-week FAA extension, which would provide Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) with additional time to finalize a deal before the Friday night deadline. Subsequently, Johnson canceled House votes for the rest of the week, granting his Members an extended weekend while Schumer and the Senate continued their work.

Johnson’s message appeared unmistakable – once again, he was unwilling to put up a fight. Now, Johnson, who proclaimed himself a “wartime Speaker,” finds himself in a battle, although it is the Democrats who are rushing to his aid. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) pledged in late April to deliver the votes necessary to table the motion to vacate, further fueling rumors on Capitol Hill that Johnson had made undisclosed concessions with Democrats, going beyond delivering their top priorities for months.

In their joint statement announcing their pledge, Jeffries and House Democrat leadership commended Johnson for collaborating with a “bipartisan coalition” that included Biden and “traditional Republicans” to counteract “MAGA extremism” and provide substantial aid to Ukraine and Gaza. Jeffries’ rationale for endorsing the Republican speaker became evident when he stated in a Sunday CBS broadcast that Democrats have been in control of the House agenda.

“Even though we’re in the minority, we effectively have been governing as if we were in the majority because we continue to provide a majority of the votes necessary to get things done,” he told CBS. “Those are just the facts.”