Another Trump ally goes public

Republicans late on October 24 (local time) selected Representative Mike Johnson as their latest candidate for the position of Speaker of the US House of Representatives. The decision came hours after the previous pick, Representative Tom Emmer, abruptly withdrew due to opposition from former President Donald Trump and hard-line Republican lawmakers.

Johnson, a Louisiana representative, is a junior member of the House Republican leadership. The 51-year-old lawmaker becomes the fourth Republican candidate for the seat after Emmer, Trump-endorsed Jim Jordan and Steve Scalise fell in a near-nonsense political cycle since Kevin McCarthy was ousted three weeks ago.

The division within the Republican Party in the US House of Representatives is evident through the fact that far-right members will not accept a more traditional speaker and moderate congressmen do not want a hard-liner leader.

In the final ballot on October 24, Mr. Johnson won 128 votes out of 221 – more than any previous candidate, but still not enough. In the bipartisan vote scheduled for October 25, any candidate will need to win at least 217 votes to get the gavel, the symbolic power of the Speaker of the House.

World - US House Speaker Election: Another Trump ally “takes the stage” — Rep. Mike Johnson is surrounded by colleagues as he speaks to reporters after winning the nomination for Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from the Republican convention on Capitol Hill in Washington, Oct. 24, 2023. Photo: NY Post

“Mike! Mike! Mike!” lawmakers chanted at a news conference afterward, surrounding Mr Johnson and taking selfies with the newest candidate to show their support.

Mr Johnson, one of Mr Trump's staunchest allies in his bid to overturn the 2020 presidential election, said he was "very confident" he would be elected speaker of the US House of Representatives.

“You will see this group here operating like a well-oiled machine,” the congressman told reporters, flanked by several Republican colleagues.

For the past three weeks Republicans have squandered their majority against Democrats in the House of Representatives – a frustrating embarrassment to some, democracy in action to others, but not at all how the US House of Representatives should operate.

The federal government is at risk of shutting down for weeks if the House remains without a leader, leaving the bicameral Congress unable to pass a funding bill before a November 17 deadline to keep services and offices running.

More urgently, Democratic President Joe Biden has asked Congress for $105 billion in aid — to help Israel and Ukraine amid conflict and to shore up the U.S.-Mexico border. Federal aviation and agriculture programs will also expire if no legislative action is taken.

Worried and exhausted, Republican lawmakers are trying to move on. “It could be the fourth, or fifth, or sixth, or 10th try, we’ll get it,” said Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ky .

Minh Duc (According to AP, Bloomberg)

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