MTG files ludicrous motion to oust House speaker. Let's Make Stupidity Embarrassing Again.

Moments after lawmakers in the House of Representatives passed a spending bill to avert a government shutdown – also known as “doing their job” – Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene embodied the MAGA moment we live in by filing a motion to vacate Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson.

The Georgia congresswoman showed herself again to be all the things the Republican Party of Donald Trump represents; attention-seeking, spiteful, unserious, opposed to governing and proudly ignorant.

The $1.2 trillion spending package passed on a bipartisan vote, is supported by leaders from both parties in Congress and President Joe Biden, and contains a number of measures conservatives wanted, from $62 billion for Homeland Security to a 6% cut to foreign aid programs.

Or as a me-me-me MAGA Republican like Greene might say: “UNACCEPTABLE AND TYRANNICAL!!”

Like so many of her ilk in Congress and among the various slavish minions who swoon at the mere mention of Dear Leader Trump, Greene – on the heels of Republicans doing something positive – chose chaos. Specifically, the kind of chaos that makes TV cameras turn in her direction so she can pretend she’s a serious person and not a box of wine in human form.

Marjorie Taylor Greene again shows she's an unserious MAGA caricature

After filing her motion, the great stateswoman of Georgia stood on the Capitol steps and said: “I filed a motion to vacate today, but it's more of a warning and a pink slip.”

Which led me to think: “Words. Do they really mean anything anymore?”

Trump is for sale. All it costs is $454 million.

A pink slip, to anyone who has ever received one, is less a warning and more a farewell. But not making sense has never been an obstacle for Greene, so she persisted.

She described her motion to vacate as “a warning,” but when asked if she would go forward and force a vote on it said, “I will.”

Mike Johnson isn't going anywhere. Political stunts with no follow-through define Trump's MAGA movement

She didn’t file the motion as privileged. That would have required a vote within two legislative days. Filing it as a regular motion means it can wind up in a committee and never go anywhere. In other words, this was a stunt, another tool from the MAGA toolbox – say you’re going to do something, make a big to-do about it and then never follow through, all while promising that you are MOST DEFINITELY going to follow through.

Pressed on a timeline for her motion, Greene said: “I’m not saying that it won't happen in two weeks, or it won’t happen in a month or who knows when, but I am saying the clock has started. It’s time for our conference to choose a new leader.”

To borrow from the famous political comedy series “The Brady Bunch”: “Sure, Jan.”

Celebrating stupidity is not great for American politics

Greene is an unserious person in a party that is predominantly unserious and virtually ungovernable. We would be right to ignore her nonsense were it not for the fact that the man she and others like her worship – Trump – is running for president and could well win.

MAGA loves when Trump lies. The rest of the voters won't.

Trump poses a threat on many fronts. But under the layers of cruelty and anti-democratic rhetoric and overwhelming narcissism there is one thing he has promoted and celebrated and made acceptable: stupidity.

Greene once again made herself the face of that Friday. It’s important to look in that face and recognize that it should be shunned.

I’ll keep it simple: Make Stupidity Embarrassing Again.

That’s how we, Democrats and Republicans and everyone else, rid ourselves of stunt-pulling nonsense-enthusiasts like Greene.

Follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on X, formerly Twitter, @RexHuppke and Facebook facebook.com/RexIsAJerk

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MTG shows she's gone full Trump with motion to vacate House speaker