Mike Johnson retaliates against House Republican who voted against him for speaker

Of the three House Republicans who initially voted against allowing House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to keep the gavel, two ultimately changed their vote after being cajoled by President-elect Donald Trump. Now, Johnson is taking action against the one member who didn't change his vote.

Axios reported Tuesday that Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has been removed from the Rules Committee, which is regarded as one of the most powerful committees in the House of Representatives. Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), who is a member of the arch-conservative House Freedom Caucus, is taking Massie's spot on the influential committee.

Notably, Griffith differs from his colleagues in the Freedom Caucus by almost never joining in on their frequent criticism of Johnson's leadership, though he told Axios he considers himself to be a "rules guy."

READ MORE: 'Still a war going on': Johnson won over far-right reps by agreeing to these 10 demands

"[I]f the rules are set up in accordance with the House rules, precedent and Jefferson's manual, then I don't look at the policy, I look at the rules," Griffith said. "Step out of line of the general policy of parliamentary history in this country and elsewhere, then I might have a question or two to raise."

Massie had served on the committee for nearly two years, having been first appointed in 2023 by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in exchange for his support during that speaker election. Massie, along with Freedom Caucus members Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) and Chip Roy (R-Texas), occasionally joined Democrats in preventing committee measures from coming to the floor for a full vote in protest of Johnson's decisions regarding federal spending.

The Kentucky Republican has long been a thorn in the side of the speaker, having supported an unsuccessful effort to oust him via a motion to vacate fielded by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) over his decision to send more funding to support Ukraine in its war with Russia. Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) also supported the motion, though Johnson kept the gavel with help from Democrats, who promised to support Johnson due to his position on Ukraine.

11-term Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), who is 81 years old, has been named the new chair of the Rules Committee. She's more recently known for her outburst at ABC News reporter Rachel Scott after Johnson was first elected speaker in 2023, yelling at Scott to "shut up" when she asked about his support of Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Foxx is replacing former Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas), who retired at the end of the 118th Congress.

READ MORE: 'No more of the nonsense': GOP reps hint at 'consequences' if Johnson crosses 'red lines'

Click here to read Axios' article in its entirety.