Mike Johnson elected House speaker with broad Republican support

Table Of Content

• Johnson played a leading role in efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
• President Biden addresses campus unrest
• Republicans Elect Mike Johnson as House Speaker, Ending Party Chaos
• LGBTQ+ people in Huntington Beach fearful of what they say is a rise in hostility
• Johnson says he's never voted against Ukraine aid. That's not what his record says.

The Supreme Court ultimately rejected the suit, but not before Mr. Johnson persuaded more than 60 percent of House Republicans to sign onto the effort. He did so by telling them that the initiative had been personally blessed by Mr. Trump, and that the former president was “anxiously awaiting” to see who in Congress would defend him. After the leak of the Supreme Court’s decision on abortion in May of last year, the Johnsons hosted an episode that explored the “future of life in America,” while also sharing their personal jubilation about the news of the pending decision. “While there are issues where we differ, we must get back to governing for the good of the country,” Mr. Lawler wrote on social media, posting a photo of himself and Mr. Johnson shaking hands. Evoking his evangelical Christian faith, Mr. Johnson repeatedly referred to scripture in his speech from the House floor.

Johnson played a leading role in efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Notably, Greene was absent from the Capitol on Monday night when lawmakers returned to Washington from a week-long recess. WASHINGTON – Democrats are vowing to rescue House Speaker Mike Johnson from an ouster threat, throwing the embattled Republican speaker a lifeline as he faces revolt from his party's right flank. Many House Republicans are eager to move past the divisions that have tormented their ranks ever since taking the majority last January. At a closed-door session Tuesday morning, much of the discussion focused on how to create unity in the party heading into the November elections. A forthcoming HBO documentary on a major sex abuse scandal at Ohio State University could have haunted the GOP if Jordan, a former assistant wrestling coach there, had been elevated to the speakership.

President Biden addresses campus unrest

Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., said Republicans heard from Michael Whatley, the new chairman of the Republican National Committee, who emphasized that Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, wants to unify the majority in the House. The House GOP went more than three weeks without a leader after eight Republicans, led by Florida’s Matt Gaetz, voted to jettison McCarthy with the help of House Democrats. Johnson’s ascension to the speaker’s chair cements the GOP’s fiercely pro-Trump, far-right faction as the face of the national party. The speaker of the House is second in line, after the vice president, to fill any presidential vacancy. While not one of the highest-ranking members of Republican leadership in the House, Johnson currently serves as the vice chair of the Republican conference, having won election from his fellow GOP members.

Mike Johnson elected House speaker on first ballot with support from all Republicans - PBS NewsHour

Mike Johnson elected House speaker on first ballot with support from all Republicans.

Posted: Wed, 25 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Republicans Elect Mike Johnson as House Speaker, Ending Party Chaos

Johnson, a longtime opponent of abortion rights and LGBTQ+ rights, served in Louisiana’s state Legislature from 2015 to 2017. In Washington, he ran the Republican Study Committee, a group of socially conservative lawmakers, and served as vice chair of the House Republican Caucus, a low-ranking party leadership post. Johnson has been a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump and was a key congressional figure in the failed efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Johnson was first elected to the House in 2016 and serves as vice chairman of the House Republican Conference, as well as GOP deputy whip, an assistant leadership role.

LGBTQ+ people in Huntington Beach fearful of what they say is a rise in hostility

The vote put him second in line to the presidency, capping an extraordinary period of twists and turns on Capitol Hill. It marked a victory for the far right that has become a dominant force in the Republican Party, which rose up this month to effectively dictate the removal of an establishment speaker and the installation of an arch-conservative replacement. As House Republicans gathered earlier in the week to select their third nominee for speaker, Trump vowed to remain on the sidelines of the race.

News Analysis: The House Republican civil war shows Trump’s power — and its limits

Longworth's successor, John "Cactus Jack" Garner of Texas, left the office after just over a year to be Franklin Roosevelt's first vice president. Prior to the GOP's 40-year sentence as the minority party, several of its speakers had risen to the top rung largely on their personal popularity among their colleagues. One was Joseph Martin of Massachusetts, who led the party in the House during two brief interludes of majority status after World War II. Both lasted only the minimum two years, the first ending with Democratic Harry S. Truman's surprise White House win in 1948. Martin was back four years later when Eisenhower was first elected president in 1952, but that tour at the top was cut short by his party's sharp losses two years later.

Johnson says he's never voted against Ukraine aid. That's not what his record says.

“I look forward to meeting with Speaker Johnson soon to discuss the path forward to avoid a government shutdown,” Mr. Schumer said in a statement. A bloc of Republicans had objected to the speaker bid of Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, the hard-right co-founder of the Freedom Caucus, because of his role in helping lead Mr. Trump’s efforts to overturn the election. Democrats were scathing in their assessment of Mr. Johnson’s ascent to the speakership. Representative Pete Aguilar of California, the Democratic conference chairman, said that the speaker fight had devolved into a contest over “who can appease Donald Trump.” At that line, a handful of hard-right Republicans stood and applauded. The elevation of Mr. Johnson, 51, an architect of the effort to overturn the 2020 election and a religious conservative opposed to abortion rights, homosexuality and gay marriage, further cemented the Republican Party’s lurch to the right. It came after a historic fight that began when the hard right ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Oct. 3, and raged on as the divided House G.O.P. nominated and then quickly discarded three other candidates to succeed him.

"Our commitment to Israel's security is ironclad and Israel has a right to defend itself under the international rules of war against the brutal terror unleashed on its citizens by Hamas," Jeffries said. The New York Democrat pledged his party will back Mr. Biden as he works to free hostages held by Hamas. "From the very beginning of this Congress, House Democrats have been governing for the people," Jeffries said.

d Republican joins motion to oust Mike Johnson as House speaker

The House cannot conduct business without a speaker installed, creating a dire situation due to a looming government shutdown on Nov. 17 and the urgent need to decide on funding packages for Israel and Ukraine. President Joe Biden called to congratulate the new speaker and said it’s “time for all of us to act responsibly” with challenges ahead to fund the government and provide aid for Ukraine and Israel. Johnson, 51, of Louisiana, swept through on the first ballot with support from all Republicans anxious to put the past weeks of tumult behind and get on with the business of governing. On Wednesday, Mr. Johnson was toiling to help Republicans turn the page from the chaos of the past few weeks. He said there would be none of the typical celebrations that accompany the election of a new speaker. The views are sharply at odds with those of most Americans, according to opinion polls that have found the public is broadly supportive of gay rights.

His elevation to speaker from such a low-level post is extremely rare and reminiscent of former Illinois Republican Rep. Denny Hastert's rise in 1999 from chief deputy whip to speaker, in the wake of Georgia Republican Rep. Newt Gingrich's resignation as speaker. Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, was up next, but after three failed floor votes, he, too, bowed out of the running. The party next selected Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., the No. 3 Republican, as their pick, but he realized he couldn't amass 217 votes either after Trump came out against him, and he quit just hours after winning the nomination.

He would work with newer members on the panel and use his expertise in constitutional law to advise on the best way to frame questions. WASHINGTON (AP) — A low-key lawmaker in Congress for less than a decade, new House Speaker Mike Johnson isn’t recognizable to most Americans. But the social conservative and devoted ally of former President Donald Trump has been a quiet force within the Republican conference he now unexpectedly leads.

He is in his fourth congressional term and, prior to running for speaker, he maintained a relatively low national profile. A lawyer specializing in constitutional issues, Johnson had rallied Republicans around Trump’s legal effort to overturn the 2020 election results. Lawmakers quickly reconvened to get back to work, approving a resolution saying the House “stands with Israel” and “condemns Hamas’ brutal war.” Next, they turned to a stalled government funding bill. Three weeks on without a House speaker, the Republicans have been wasting their majority status — a maddening embarrassment to some, democracy in action to others, but not at all how the House is expected to function. He said that millions of unborn children had lost their lives because of what he called a “legal fiction that the Supreme Court foisted upon this country” and said that “God will bless us” for the court’s decision.

During the speaker battle, Trump proved more adept at hurting candidates than helping them win — his early endorsee, Jordan, flamed out on the floor. But Johnson's ability to avoid Trump's ire cleared a hurdle for him within the House GOP, which is attuned to the wishes of the "MAGA" base. Johnson's voting record has earned him a lifetime rating of 92% from the American Conservative Union and 90% from Heritage Action. Johnson is a constitutional lawyer who has used his talents to craft some creative — and controversial — theories. The most notable is his role in devising an argument aimed at keeping Donald Trump in power even though he lost the 2020 election.

His next order of business, he said, would be addressing what he called the country’s “broken border” with Mexico. He made no mention of the impeachment inquiry into President Biden, or of the impending government shutdown that will begin next month if Congress fails to pass legislation to keep the government funded. The new speaker has been in Congress since 2017 and has no experience in the House leadership. Crane, who told reporters earlier this month that he was “open” to supporting a motion to vacate, said Monday that while he has “left the door open,” the timing is not right for a conservative coup. Two colleagues had spoken up to say they would join Greene in such a vote, giving her enough to defeat the speaker if all the chamber's Democrats voted to do the same.

Mike Johnson's evolution on Ukraine aid as House speaker - The Washington Post - The Washington Post

Mike Johnson's evolution on Ukraine aid as House speaker - The Washington Post.

Posted: Sun, 21 Apr 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Last week, Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan was selected as the new Republican House speaker nominee. But after three rounds of voting in the House speaker election, Jordan was also unable to secure the number of votes needed to win. By Friday, his dreams of the speakership were dashed when members of his own party voted to drop him as the party's House speaker nominee. Instead, he moved quickly to bring up a resolution expressing solidarity and support for Israel.

It would take only a handful of Republicans to remove Johnson from the speakership if the Democratic caucus went along with the effort. The revolving door of speaker nominees was never about finding the right person to lead the Republican conference, Aguilar said in a floor speech nominating Jeffries to the speakership. Though Johnson is not as well-known as the Republicans who just failed to secure the speakership, his lack of a national profile may have ultimately aided his campaign. McCarthy’s ouster caused embarrassing infighting within the GOP conference to spill into the public eye.