Posted on 10/24/2023 9:15:53 PM PDT by entropy12
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans chose Rep. Mike Johnson as their latest nominee for House speaker late Tuesday, hours after an earlier pick, Rep. Tom Emmer, abruptly withdrew in the face of opposition from Donald Trump and hardline GOP lawmakers.
Johnson of Louisiana, a lower-ranked member of the House GOP leadership team, becomes the fourth Republican nominee after Emmer and the others fell short in what has become an almost absurd cycle of political infighting since Kevin McCarthy's ouster as GOP factions jockey for power.
Refusing to unify, far-right members won’t accept a more traditional speaker and moderate conservatives don’t want a hardliner. During private balloting, Johnson won a majority, but ahead of an expected House floor vote Wednesday the nominee will need almost all Republicans to win the gavel.
“Mike! Mike! Mike!” lawmakers chanted at a press conference afterward, surrounding Johnson and posing for selfies in a show of support.
Three weeks on, the Republicans have been frittering away their majority status — a maddening embarrassment to some, democracy in action to others, but not at all how the House is expected to function.
Anxious and exhausted, Republican lawmakers are desperately trying to move on. “Pretty sad commentary on governance right now,” said Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ark. “Maybe on the fourth or fifth or sixth or 10th try we’ll get this thing right.”
After he withdrew Tuesday afternoon, Emmer briskly left the building where he had been meeting privately with Republicans. He said later at the Capitol that Trump's opposition did not affect his decision to bow out.
“I made my decision based on my relationship with the conference,” he said, referring to the GOP majority. He said he would support whomever emerges as the new nominee. “We'll get it done.”
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
Waiting for the knives….
Let’s just get a Speaker and get this clown show over with.
Who is Rep. Mike Johnson?
According to Social Media Strategist Joey Mannarino, Mike Johnson boasts a Liberty Score of 74%. A representative from Louisiana, Johnson has been a member of Congress since 2017 and has a generally strong voting record.
He played a key role in initiating the Texas Amicus Brief in 2020 and voted against the certification of the 2020 election results, which he viewed as fraudulent.
A strong advocate for national security, Johnson backed Trump’s travel ban on countries considered to be hotbeds of terrorism. He also served on Trump’s legal defense team during both the 2019 and 2020 Senate impeachment trials.
Mike sounds too good to be true. Will the RINOs allow him to be speaker? We shall see.
Most importantly, does he support ‘regular order’… That’s where McCarthy let us down. Took 6 weeks off in August … bad optics
The media will attack him as an election denier.
Jim Jordan or nothing. F**k GOPe scumbags.
“To his advantage, he doesn’t have a lot of baggage,” Bacon, one of the more moderate Republicans in the conference, said of Johnson. “He’s a nice, decent person. He's a man of convictions but he treats people very respectfully.”
In his letter to fellow Republicans, Johnson said it is a critical time for the House Republican majority to provide leadership.
“As Israel is viciously attacked, Russia, China and our other adversaries are becoming more emboldened. Our national debt has surpassed $33.5 trillion, our southern border is overrun, violent crime is rampant, and the rising cost of living is crushing our constituents,” Johnson said.
As Speaker, Johnson said he will commit to several key priorities. He said he will restore trust, advance a comprehensive policy agenda, promote individual member’s strengths, engage member to work together, grow the Republican majority, among others.
“The complex role of Speaker at this time requires a team player and a bridge-builder with endless energy and a unique mix of skills and experiences,” Johnson wrote. “My extensive background in law, policy, strategic analysis, messaging, managing, networking, and building coalitions happens to have served as an uncommon preparation for the extraordinary demands of this day.”
So, unlike McHenry, Johnson probably wouldn't have kicked Pelosi out of her "special" office.
Sounds a lot like the nonsense I heard from my Megacorp. Most of the agenda ended up being "white males, you're screwed".
This would not have taken three weeks if the members of the house would simply continue their discussions and repeated votes, instead of taking days between each. I think they’re just enjoying a bit of vacation on the taxpayers dime.
Gaetz just posted on Truth Social that Mike Johnson has his complete and total endorsement for speaker.
He is part of McCarthy‘s leadership team. He should not be speaker.
Johnson won the final ballot with 128 votes compared to 29 for Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and 44 for other — including 43 for McCarthy, who was not formally running.
Johnson initially finished second to House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) in an earlier vote on Tuesday, but Emmer dropped out hours later due to a lack of support from conservatives.
And wasting money on Ukraine? What’s he say about that?
Johnson addressed reporters after his win, flanked by dozens of his GOP colleagues, including House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) and Scalise.
WASHINGTON— Yesterday, United States Representative Mike Johnson’s legislation, the Asylum Reform and Border Protection Act, passed the House Judiciary Committee and will be considered by the House as part of the Border Security and Enforcement Act of 2023...
The bill enforces international agreements by making ineligible for asylum aliens who have transited through at least one safe third country en route to the United States.
The bill applies a heightened credible fear standard of “more likely than not” that an alien could establish eligibility for asylum versus the current, lower “significant possibility” standard to discourage frivolous claims.
The bill also defines “membership in a particular social group,” “political opinion,” and “persecution” to promote consistency in immigration court rulings.
74% Liberty Score, a C. Not great, but 20 points higher than McCarthy, so it moves the Overton Window a bit in our direction.
I’d rather Jordan or Donalds or Roy or Massie, but Johnson may be the most conservative person we can get who can get to 217.
Not thrilled, but it’s a step forward.
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