Most House Republicans are eager to vote to retain Mike Johnson, R-La., as speaker in the new Congress and get busy working on President-elect Donald Trump's legislative agenda.
The GOP conference will meet Friday to vote for a new speaker, with Johnson facing challenges in keeping the gavel.
That's because Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., has said he will not vote for Johnson, and several other conservatives have said they are unsure how they will vote. They're angry with Johnson for agreeing to a failed spending bill last month in an attempt to avoid a federal shutdown. A continuing resolution eventually passed to fund the government.
A lengthy process to determine the speakership could delay Trump's election victory certification set for Jan. 6.
"To oppose Johnson now weakens the GOP and strengthens [House Minority Leader] Hakeem Jeffries," Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb. told CNN. "It also puts at risk the Electoral College certification scheduled for Jan. 6. These guys serve as a 'fifth column' for the Dems."
Bacon and colleagues are eager to begin working with the GOP controlling the White House and both chambers of Congress.
"If we spend even a moment fighting over who should be the speaker, we will have squandered that time. There is an acute understanding of that fact," Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., told the network.
"The problem is, we have some more colorful members who maybe view things differently."
The GOP will hold a narrow 219-215 majority — with former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz’s seat vacant — when the new Congress starts. Johnson will need 218 votes to retain the gavel.
Although several members, most notably Massie, have expressed dissatisfaction with Johnson, no serious challenger has emerged to oppose the speaker. Besides that, Trump endorsed Johnson on Monday.
"To beat a horse, you need a horse," one GOP source told CNN. "Once the president came out, it took the wind out of any opposition sail."
Trump advisers say the president-elect endorsed Johnson for a reason.
"[Johnson] has showed Trump over the last year that he will back him up from the House," one of the advisers told CNN.
The New York Times reported that one Trump ally said the fact GOP lawmakers had defied the president-elect on the debt limit demand — he wants to extend it — helped the incoming chief executive that realize that some members of the House posed challenges, but Johnson was not among them.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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