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As Republican Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana prepared to become the nation’s new House speaker, a variety of GOP senators conceded that they had no idea who he is. That reaction probably wasn’t limited to Capitol Hill: There hasn’t been any public polling on the congressman, but I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest that the overwhelming majority of American voters would struggle to pick the congressman out of a lineup.
So, let’s review the top 11 things to know about the new House speaker.
1. Johnson is more than just an election denier. Few congressional Republicans did more than the Louisianan to keep Donald Trump in power after his defeat.
2. Johnson is inexperienced. Traditionally, House speakers cultivate impressive résumés, over the course of many years, before holding a gavel. As we’ve discussed, Johnson hasn’t quite finished his seventh year in Congress; he has never chaired a legislative committee; and he’s the least-experienced speaker in a century and a half. Given Johnson’s to-do list, this is a difficult time for on-the-job training.
3. Johnson is an anti-abortion crusader. Even among House Republicans, the new speaker’s opposition to reproductive rights is extreme, and his record includes co-sponsoring legislation for a national abortion ban.
4. Johnson is an anti-LGBTQ+ crusader. Even among House Republicans, the new speaker’s opposition to LGBTQ+ rights is extreme, and his record includes co-sponsoring federal legislation modeled after Florida’s so-called “don’t say gay” bill.
5. Johnson will be popular with climate deniers. As a New York Times report summarized, “Representative Mike Johnson of Louisiana, the newly elected House speaker, has questioned climate science, opposed clean energy and received more campaign contributions from oil and gas companies than from any other industry last year.”
6. Johnson is a fierce opponent of the separation of church and state. The new House speaker has not only criticized the constitutional principle of church-state separation, the GOP congressman has also denied that church-state separation should be seen as a constitutional principle in the first place.
7. Johnson has endorsed cuts to Social Security and Medicare. During his tenure as chairman of the Republican Study Committee, the group touted budget plans that called for deep cuts to Social Security and Medicare. Just as notably, Johnson talked about his support for cuts to the public social-insurance programs at a public forum in 2018.
8. Johnson is far to the right on reforms to gun laws. A variety of gun measures have been introduced in Congress in recent years, many of which have garnered bipartisan support. The House speaker opposed all of them.
9. Johnson has partnered with creationists. The Louisiana Republican has not only written for a creationist publication, he also represented a creationist ministry in court in order to get taxpayer subsidies for a Noah’s Ark amusement park.
10. Johnson’s approach to fundraising might prove problematic. As a Washington Post report summarized, “Johnson lacks McCarthy’s fundraising experience and deep relationships with donors. ... That’s raised fears that he won’t be able to raise as much money to help the party hold the House as McCarthy would have.” Punchbowl News described the new speaker’s fundraising skills as “paltry.”
11. Johnson has inherited a whole lot of problems. As we’ve discussed, all of the challenges that burdened Kevin McCarthy three weeks ago remain unchanged. Johnson has the same small majority. He faces the same motion-to-vacate rules. He has to lead the same fractured caucus. He still needs to figure out how to prevent a government shutdown — with a mid-November deadline looming. He still needs to determine how, whether, and to what extent Congress will support U.S. allies abroad in the midst of military crises.
Or put another way, the House’s new leader might not love this job.
Dan Pfeiffer summarized the new House speaker with this handy equation: “Here’s who he is: Paul Ryan’s economic policies + Mike Pence’s views on abortion + Donald Trump’s dangerously wacky views on the 2020 election = Mike Johnson.”