'Herding cats': GOP hardliners vent fury at Mike Johnson — but aren't gunning for his job

Conservative hardliners are furious that House Speaker Mike Johnson negotiated a deal that they feel does not cut spending sufficiently enough, but they aren't threatening his job just yet.

House Freedom Caucus chair Bob Good (R-VA) criticized the first of two funding packages — but doesn't expect Johnson to make any effort to find a better deal on the second that must pass by March 22 to avert a partial government shutdown, reported NBC News.

"The speaker doesn’t want to do that, he just wants to pass what the Senate wants so that we avoid any conflict,” Good said. “The speaker is unwilling to tell the Senate no. It doesn’t matter what we offer.”

However, Good said he was "open to ideas" for pushing Johnson further right but ended the conversation when asked if Republicans might file a motion to vacate, and other Freedom Caucus members also declined to say whether that was a possibility.

“It is business as usual,” said Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), a Freedom Caucus member. “I think the speaker reflects a conference that likes to give lip service to fiscal restraint and refuses to act on it. That’s what I think.”

Roy said the motion to vacate should be "sparingly used," and another Republican suggested Johnson would keep his job simply because no one would be willing to replace him.

ALSO READ: 'What a piece of work': Marjorie Greene's 'childish' SOTU response trashed by Senate Dems

“Let’s just go down to Disney and see if Daffy Duck or maybe Goofy would want the job,” said Rep. Troy Nehls (R-TX), another Freedom Caucus member. “Maybe Mickey! Maybe Mickey would want the job.”

Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) called the spending bills "irresponsible," but stopped short of blaming the speaker.

“He inherited a lot of this — no, I don’t blame him,” said Norman, also a Freedom Caucus member. “It’s like herding cats up here.”