'Becoming a wedge': Vulnerable House Republicans aren’t taking Johnson up on efforts to shield Trump

14 June 2024

After a Manhattan jury found former President Donald Trump guilty on 34 criminal counts, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) urged the U.S. Supreme Court to "step in," overturn the verdict and "set this straight."

The far-right speaker told right-wing Fox News, "This will be overturned, guys, there's no question about it. It's just going to take some time to do it."

Johnson's critics have been slamming his verdict/Supreme Court comments as wildly inappropriate. And journalist Greg Sargent, in a thread posted on X, formerly Twitter, on June 14, stressed that House Republicans who are seeking reelection in swing districts have been in no hurry to join the speaker in that effort.

Sargent, known for his work for The Washington Post and, more recently, The New Republic, tweets, "An important development: Trump's criminality is becoming a genuine wedge issue against Republicans. Don't be fooled by GOP's outward shows of unity behind Dear Leader. The cracks in the facade are very clear."

Sargent goes on to offer some "evidence" of those "cracks."

The liberal journalist observes, "When Rep Mike Simpson, a very senior GOPer, told @playbookdc that he opposes defunding Jack Smith, he also directly undermined the entire Trump/GOP argument that the prosecutions are the illegitimate work of the Deep State…. This is a big deal. A top GOPer essentially admitted Jack Smith is operating within his legit institutional role."

Sargent adds that Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) told him, "Mike Simpson just destroyed MAGA-world's argument that Trump's prosecution.... is fraudulent or in bad faith…. Other Republicans should follow Simpson and stop demonizing the justice system and the rule of law."

Sargent argues that with House Republicans in swing districts, it is important to look at what they do and not just at what they say. And he observes a pattern, pointing out that "vulnerable House Republicans are balking at voting for all the craven things Mike Johnson is offering to shield Trump from the law."

"Trump's ritual humiliation of Rs like (Senate Minority Leader Mitch) McConnell on the Hill is all about forcing them to *act as if* the politics of Trump's criming favors the GOP/isn't an issue," Sargent tweets. "This is spin. The real tell is vulnerable Rs not wanting to vote for shielding Trump…. Trump is forcing Rs to repeatedly vote on protecting him from the law. That's bad for Rs, full stop."

Sargent adds, "GOP pretending his criming is a winner is psyops. As I try to show, Ds now get this.

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