It appears the gambit run by Matt Gaetz and seven other Republicans to oust former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy may have just paid off in spades.
I can tell you that Gaetz will win his district in a landslide in 2024 because of what he got in return for his unprecedented move. Speaker Mike Johnson is a conservative Christian who opposes the war in Ukraine, supports Israel and believes the needs of ordinary Americans must be the first and last priority for those in Congress.
Mike Johnson is a hard-nosed true believer in America—and he promised to do the people’s work, get the government spending under control, and stop the invasion at the southern border.
But most people don’t seem to know too much about the Congressman who grew up in Shreveport before setting his sights on Louisiana’s 4th Congressional District.
Today I think it is critically important to meet the man who now has the gavel—and get a sense of who he is and how he might lead the people’s house.
After three weeks of turmoil and upheaval for the GOP, his comments after being sworn in seemed like a refreshing change from all the rancor we saw before.
Johnson promised an “aggressive schedule in the days and weeks ahead,” and that we’ll see “Congress work as hard as it’s ever worked” for the American people.
That was our introduction to the eight-year member of Congress who was considered among the darkest of dark horses in the race for Speaker.
And he wanted to focus on the work at hand, stating that our patience in the past weeks will pay off.
Aside from his speech, Speaker Johnson’s performance in committee is a better gauge of who he is. I, for one, have liked him for quite some time. His grilling of FBI Director Wray over the censoring of conservatives online was a work of art.
Look, this guy is better than Kevin McCarthy and significantly better than Tom Emmer, who went down in flames this week. He might prove better than Jim Jordan who, after three attempts, gave up the ghost. I say this because Johnson is a Conservative Christian who believes in what America is and what America can be.
We have a lot to learn, and of course, the days and weeks ahead will give us a much clearer picture of how he will lead the Republican conference in the House and how he will deal with Democrats on the other side of the aisle.
Johnson gave about an 18-minute speech after securing the unanimous support of the House Republicans—winning 220-209 to become the 56th Speaker of the House. I think it’s important to consider some of what he said.
Johnson outlined individual freedom, limited government, the rule of law, peace through strength, fiscal responsibility, free markets, and human dignity as the seven tenets that made America the greatest nation in the world. He believes in them, and he will fight for them.
On the border, he called the status quo “unacceptable,” and sounds like he’s ready to fix this mess now.
On top of everything else, he sounds fired up and ready to work now.
It just seems to me that there is a lot of common sense flowing from the state of Louisiana these days. Speaker Johnson is not the only one. In fact, my favorite politician serving in Washington today hails from the Cajun state.
Senator John Kennedy continues to be one of the most sensible and entertaining politicians on the Hill. Just yesterday, he embarrassed officials from Homeland Security and the State Department, who had no idea how many illegals have entered the country.
After nearly a month of turmoil, things look like they’re finally settled. It’s time to get back to work, and I’m feeling optimistic.