The Republican speaker’s elaborate strategy for passing a foreign aid package over his party’s objections will require the cooperation of Democrats to push it through — and possibly save his job.

Speaker Mike Johnson’s elaborate plan for pushing aid to Ukraine through the House over his own party’s objections relies on an unusual strategy: He is counting on House Democrats and their leader, Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, to provide the votes necessary to clear the way for it to come to the floor.

If Democrats were to provide those crucial votes, it would be the second time in two years that Republican leaders have had to turn to the minority party to rescue them from their own recalcitrant right-wing colleagues in order to allow major legislation to be debated and voted on.

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That puts Democrats once again in a strange but strong position, wielding substantial influence over the measure, including which proposed changes, if any, are allowed to be voted on and how the foreign aid is structured. After all, Mr. Johnson knows that if they are unsatisfied and choose to withhold their votes, the legislation risks imploding before it even comes up.

MBFC
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