Speaker Mike Johnson’s push to advance an aid package for Ukraine in the face of vehement opposition from his own party was never going to be easy.
But it has been made even more politically perilous by a pair of concessions to the far right that he inherited from his predecessor: allowing a single lawmaker to call a snap vote to oust the speaker, and giving ultraconservatives a bloc of seats on a crucial panel that controls what legislation can make it to the House floor.
Both of those concessions, agreed to by former Speaker Kevin McCarthy more than a year ago, are now tormenting Mr. Johnson as he tries to push through a $95 billion aid bill for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. They have hemmed him in to having to rely heavily on Democrats — not only to clear the way for the legislation and drag it across the finish line, but potentially to save his job.
Mr. Johnson’s predicament was on vivid display on the House floor on Thursday as a group of ultraconservatives huddled around him in a heated back and forth. One after another, they urged the speaker to tie the foreign aid package to stringent anti-immigration measures, but Mr. Johnson pushed back, replying that he would not have enough Republican support to advance such a measure, according to people involved in the private conversation.
Minutes after the clash, some hard-right lawmakers who previously resisted joining the G.O.P. push to oust him began to sound more open to the idea.
“My hope was that the motion to vacate would be an elixir that only required one dose for effectiveness,” said Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida, who led the ouster of Mr. McCarthy. “But sometimes there are some therapies that require more than one dose. And I hope that’s not the case with the motion to vacate, but we’ll administer the elixir as many times as is necessary to save the country.”
