Mike Johnson 'working the phones' in desperate last-ditch effort to keep his speakership: report

24 December 2024

In Louisiana's 4th Congressional District, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson was reelected by a landslide on Election Night 2024 when he picked up more than 80 percent of the vote. But while that victory gave Johnson another two years in office, it didn't guarantee that he will continue to serve as GOP leader in the U.S. House of Representatives.

After a new Congress is seated on January 3, 2025, Johnson will need to convince fellow House members to keep him as speaker. And according to Washington Times reporters Alex Miller and Lindsey McPherson, Johnson plans to "work the phones over the holidays" in the hope of not "losing the gavel."

Some "hard-right lawmakers," Miller and McPherson report in an article published on December 23, "denounced his handling of recent spending negotiations."

"Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, is in hot water with at least a handful of Republicans who could block his reelection to speaker on January 3 by voting for another candidate," the Washington Times journalists explains. "The move could leave the speaker's chair empty for days or more as House Republicans search for a replacement who can win nearly every vote in a razor-thin GOP majority."

Miller and McPherson add, "It would prevent the House from conducting legislative business or swearing in new members and could even interfere with the January 6 certification of President-elect Donald Trump’s election to a second term."

Rep. Thomas Massey (R-Kentucky), the reporters note, has said he is a definite "no" on keeping Johnson as speaker in 2025, and Rep. Cory Mills (R-Florida) has said of the speaker, "We have a lot of our colleagues that are losing confidence."

Far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) has been a major proponent of ousting Johnson as speaker. After Greene set off a "motion to vacate," the House voted on whether or not to keep Johnson as speaker — and he got a lot of support from Democrats. The bipartisan vote to keep Johnson was 359-43.

Now, Greene is among the House Republicans who favors making billionaire Tesla/SpaceX CEO Elon Musk speaker. There is no rule saying that a House speaker has to be a member of Congress, but Rep. Mike Lawler (R-New York) is skeptical about Musk's chances.

Lawler told the Washington Times, "There's never been a speaker of the House who's not a member. So, I don't see that happening."

Read the full Washington Times article at this link.

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