Johnson blows off 'nonsense' election denier allegations — but still denies Trump’s loss

Former US Representative Liz Cheney (R-WY) drew attention to House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-LA) "constitutionally dubious effort" — according to Politico — to overturn the 2020 election in her new book Oath and Honor.

She wrote, "As I read the amicus brief — which was poorly written — it became clear that Mike was being less than honest with our colleagues. He was playing bait and switch, assuring members that the brief made no claims about specific allegations of fraud when, in fact, it was full of such claims."

According to a Sunday, January 7 Politico report, Johnson told CBS' Margaret Brennan during the latest episode of Face the Nation, "Well I’m surprised that she’s given that criticism because during that process, Liz and I were in constant dialogue about that. And, at one point, she even considered signing on to that bill. I’ll tell you that that is a fact, to that amicus brief."

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He told Brennan, "the Constitution was 'clearly violated during the 2020 election," and any criticism of Johnson's denial of President Joe Biden's win is "nonsense" in the Louisiana lawmaker's eyes. Politico notes he confirmed, "President Biden was certified as the winner of the election, he took the oath of office, he’s been the president for three years," but still "he maintained that the election violated the law."

Johnson added, "The Constitution was violated in the run up to the 2020 election, not always in bad faith, but in the aftermath of Covid, many states changed their election laws in ways that violated that plain language. That’s just a fact."

Politico reports, "In the aftermath of former President Donald Trump’s loss in 2020, Johnson helped bolster a last-ditch lawsuit filed by Texas attempting to invalidate the results in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, urging his congressional colleagues to sign onto an amicus brief in support of the suit."

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Politico's report is here.