'Somewhat weak speaker': Analyst explains why Mike Johnson will need Steve Scalise’s help
After Republicans selected United States Representative Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) as their next speaker Wednesday, former advisor to ex-House Speakers John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin), Brendan Buck, explained why Johnson will likely need support from Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana) as he takes on the new responsibility.
During Wednesday's episode of MSNBC's Katy Tur Reports, Buck said, "I have no idea what kind of speaker Mike Johnson is going to be. But I'm struck by how new he is, and recognizing that, having been there, parachuted into being speaker, the incredible learning curve that comes with this job. There are so many things right now that Mike Johnson just doesn't even know he needs to know, and it's one thing when you come in and have time to operate, as you were talking about, there are pressing things he's going to have to figure out right away. He's not going to know where the bathroom is on the first day.
The MSNBC political analyst continued, "I think this creates a big opportunity for Steve Scalise. I think Mike Johnson is really going to have to lean on Steve Scalise to be perhaps one of the most powerful majority leaders we've had in a long time. And maybe that's what this conference needs. Mike Johnson talked about decentralizing the speakership. There's a sense among House Republicans that the source of all the problems is speakers are too powerful. I think that's silly. But if that's the case, someone is going to be driving outcomes and that may be steve scalise, and we may have a situation where he is a somewhat weak speaker, and maybe Republicans actually want a weak speaker."
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to hold office again?
Tur replied, "Yeah, maybe. Defective speaker Steve Scalise."
Watch the video below or at this link.
'Maybe Republicans actually want a weak speaker': ex-advisor to John Boehner and Paul Ryanwww.youtube.com
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