House GOP members question Mike Johnson and Jim Jordan’s campaign motives: report

According to a Monday, October 21 Axios report, some House GOP members "privately" wonder why Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan campaigned in Michigan together over the weekend.

"He's [Jordan's] very active, he's been in New York, he was in California, so he's playing the game," a Republican lawmaker told the news outlet.

Axios notes that "If the GOP holds the House, Johnson's the front-runner for speaker. That sets up a potential Jordan challenge to Majority Leader Steve Scalise. (Jordan also denies interest in Scalise's job.)"

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Johnson told Axios, "Jim Jordan is one of my closest personal friends. He's been, in some ways, a mentor to me, and in many ways, a brother. We work very well together."

Members recognize that Jordan is vying to keep his position as Judiciary Committee Chair.

One GOP member told Axios that it's "smart on [Jordan's] part to keep [Jordan] close. He may run against Scalise where he only needs a majority of R's to win."

Another senior Republican member said, "Jordan has probably learned ... that it is good to lay the groundwork for such a time as there is a vacant leadership post."

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Axios' report is available at this link.