The choice of the ultraconservative, low-profile Louisianan brought an eventful day to a close and offered Republicans optimism about breaking the House’s deadlock, which has been going on for a week.
On Tuesday, House Republicans chose a different candidate for speaker, swiftly rejected that choice, and then nominated a fourth candidate in a haste to put an end to the extraordinary three-week impasse that has rendered Congress leaderless and ineffective.
As Congressman Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the No. 3 House Republican, withdrew his candidacy only hours after receiving the nomination, Representative Mike Johnson, a little-known social conservative from Louisiana, became the most recent candidate for the position on Tuesday night. After a severe right-wing response, including that of former President Donald J. Trump, Mr. Emmer was defeated, leaving the G.O.P. more split than ever.
Since previous Speaker Kevin McCarthy was deposed by far-right rebels three weeks ago, Mike Johnson looked to have formed a coalition by late Tuesday night that put him closer than any other contender to winning the speakership. He stated that he intended to hold a floor vote at noon on Wednesday, even though it was uncertain if he had the support to be elected.
Upon his selection, Mike Johnson stood with hundreds of other Republicans to demonstrate their unity and stated, “Democracy is a mess sometimes, but that’s our system. This House Republican majority is a strong one.
The choice of Mike Johnson, 51, was the most recent abrupt turn in the tumultuous leadership contest among House Republicans, in which they have alternated between the speaker’s choice of a mainstream conservative, a far-right hardliner, a second mainstream candidate, and now a second conservative hardliner, highlighting their distinct differences.
Mike Johnson, a lawyer and social conservative, served as the previous head of the Republican Study Committee. He participated in the impeachment defense of former President Donald J. Trump, was a key player in persuading House Republicans to sign legal briefs in support of a lawsuit that sought to invalidate the results of the 2020 election, and was the mastermind behind Mr. Trump’s effort to prevent the results from being certified. On January 6, 2021, Congress
In response to a query from reporters about his efforts to void the election on Tuesday night, Mike Johnson grinned, shook his head, and said, “Next question,” as Republicans roared behind him.
Be vocal! Talk up! Virginia Foxx of North Carolina, the chairperson of the education committee, screamed.
Evangelical Christian Mike Johnson backed legislation last year that essentially forbade discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity at any institution that gets federal funds and serves children under the age of 10.
He has also spoken out against the G.O.P.’s cruel oversight of continuing to subsidize the conflict in Ukraine. And the expense conflict will be a problem for any new speakers in the near future.
On Tuesday night, a secret ballot was used, and Mike Johnson earned 128 votes. 44 Republicans voted for non-nominated candidates, including 43 votes for Mr. McCarthy, who many said was unfairly left off the ballot. But just a small number of Republicans said they would oppose Mr. Johnson in the House in a subsequent vote, and approximately 20 Republicans chose to abstain.
Republicans hold such a tenuous lead in the House that any candidate for speaker might drop only a few votes and still prevail.
The semblance of agreement emerged just hours after Mr. Emmer’s dramatic departure, making him the third Republican to be chosen to head the party this month. Yet, his quest was unsuccessful due to grievances, personality issues, and ideological rifts in the G.O.P.’s apparently unending cycle.
In recent weeks, the Republicans have declined all three of its top leaders. Republicans have been fighting over who should be in control while wars simmer abroad and a federal shutdown looms, keeping the chamber adjourned for the majority of a month.
Rep. Steve Womack of Arkansas stated, “It’s a pretty sad indictment on the regime right now. Americans cannot have any reason to think that this convention can be controlled since they are blind to it. It’s a tragic situation. I’m sad. I’m terribly depressed.”
The latest example of what seems to be never-ending Republican dysfunction was Mr. Emmer’s death. He won the party’s internal nomination battle over Mike Johnson by a slim margin of 97 to 117 to start the day.
Nevertheless, shortly after Mr. Emmer’s nomination, over two dozen right-wing Republicans said they would not support him in the House, denying him the support he would have needed to prevail in a vote of the whole House. Meanwhile, Mr. Trump publicly attacked Mr. Emmer on social media, branding him a “Globalist RINO” (an acronym for “Republican in Name Only”) whose elevation would be a “tragic error” as he met with opponents to attempt to win them over.
Several of my excellent friends, some of whom are real warriors, aspire to be Speaker of the House. Rino One of them is not Tom Emmer, who I do not know well. They never valued the influence of Trump’s support or the magnitude and scope of MAGA. Let’s restore America’s greatness.
Most of Mr. Emmer’s detractors were Trump supporters and members of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus.
According to a source familiar with his decision who spoke about the private conversations on the condition of anonymity, Mr. Emmer informed Republicans of his plan to withdraw from the race just hours later in a closed-door meeting. Following that, he swiftly walked out of the room to avoid being questioned by reporters.
Five other Republicans were running for the nomination as of Tuesday night, but none of them had a significant national presence. After multiple voting rounds, Mike Johnson prevailed over Florida Congressman Byron Donalds, a Freedom Caucus member.
The Republican debacle has highlighted a new mindset that has taken hold of the House G.O.P. Scores of members have abandoned the traditional practice of supporting the party’s internal election victor in favor of behaving in accordance with their own personal philosophies, loyalties, and preferences.
The more conventional, business-minded friends of certain far-right Republicans, whom they accused of being in a “uniparty” with the Democrats, saw themselves as a different political party from those allies.
Since rebels forced a vote to oust Mr. McCarthy as speaker on October 3, the House has been in a state of unrest and disarray. Along with the Democrats, who stuck steadfastly behind their leader, New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, eight Republicans supported that action. Prior to selecting Mr. Emmer, the Republicans had split the votes between Representatives Steve Scalise of Louisiana and Jim Jordan of Ohio, the previous winners of their nominating process conducted behind closed doors.
Right-wing critics of Mr. Emmer pointed to his support for codifying federal rights for same-sex couples. Others disagreed with Mr. Emmer’s decision to support the speaker at the time, Mr. McCarthy, in order to avoid a government shutdown. Mr. McCarthy had proposed the stopgap budget measure. Others said that because he voted to recognize President Biden’s victory in the 2020 election, he was not sufficiently loyal to Mr. Trump.
The former president claimed that Mr. Emmer had called Mr. Trump over the weekend and offered him encouragement in an effort to calm him down. Yet, Mr. Trump made it obvious that he was not persuaded.
I believe he has learned his lesson because he now claims to be pro-Trump in every way, but who can ever be sure?” Trump wrote. Has his behavior changed only because he won? There aren’t any early voters in America; therefore, the Republican Party can’t take that chance. Voting for a globalist RINO like Tom Emmer would be a terrible error!
