Revolt: John Boehner Just Got Stunned By An Unexpected Attack From His Own Party

Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., has filed a motion to oust John Boehner as Speaker of the House.

The Tea Party favorite, now serving in his second term in Congress, filed a “vacate the chair” motion, which could force a no confidence vote by the full chamber.

In order for the move to be successful, it will require a majority vote of all the members of the House, including Democrats.

Politico reports:

The resolution, obtained by POLITICO, states that Boehner has tried to “consolidate power and centralize decision-making, bypassing the majority of the 435 members of Congress and the people they represent.” It accuses the speaker of using the “legislative calendar to create crises for the American people, in order to compel members to vote for legislation.”

The resolution also charges Boehner with using the Rules Committee to limit amendments.

The “Speaker has, through inaction, caused the power of Congress to atrophy, thereby making Congress subservient to the Executive and Judicial branches, diminishing the voice of the American People,” it reads. “Whereas the Speaker uses the power of the office to punish Members who vote according to their conscience instead of the will of the Speaker.”

Republican Study Chairman Bill Flores of Texas called Meadows’ move a “cheap political stunt.” Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Cailf.) said that “when you don’t raise any money, and you need a way to raise money you do gimmicks like this.”

“But Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), who has repeatedly voted against Boehner, said there’s a lot of ‘dissatisfaction with the leadership,’” according to Politico.

As reported by Western Journalism, Meadows briefly lost his position as chairman of the Government Operations subcommittee last month after voting against Boehner and the Republican leadership regarding Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) legislation. Other members also lost positions for not toeing the line following the TPA vote.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, ultimately reinstated Meadows after receiving an outpouring of support for the North Carolinian.

He is a member of the Freedom Caucus, made up of between 30 and 40 conservative lawmakers.

“Sources say Meadows will circulate a so-called discharge petition to force a vote on [his] motion. But if he wanted a vote in the next two legislative days, he could simply stand up and ask for one. If he did that, the motion would be considered ‘privileged,’ which would make it the immediate business of the House. In its current form, Meadows’ motion is simply a statement of opposition to Boehner,” Politico reports.

BCN editor’s note: This article first appeared at Western Journalism.