Last Friday, Mike Johnson (R-LA) was triumphant, securing a second term as House speaker. Prevailing amidst a cloud of conjecture concerning Republican backing, Johnson’s leadership position was reaffirmed. Despite initial adversity from three of his party, all Democrats and three Republicans launched their votes against Johnson. The opposition from within included Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Ralph Norman (R-SC), and Keith Self (R-TX).
There was a quick turnaround from Norman and Self after a brief tete-a-tete with Johnson immediately after the roll call. They reconsidered their stance and switched votes in favor of Johnson, triggering a wave of enthusiastic applause from the GOP gathering. With these pivotal flipped votes, the final score was 218-215. Massie remained alone, being the only Republican still opposed to Johnson.
Enthusiastically praising his GOP allies during a pre-swear-in speech to the 119th Congress, Johnson stated his commitment to radically dismiss the typical workings of Congress. Addressing admonitions of people feeling victimized by unaccountable bureaucrats they neither voted for nor knew, Johnson promised a government steered by elected leaders.
The essence of Congress, according to Johnson, was to mirror the will of the democratically elected leaders, a principle he vowed to revert to. The dialogue that transpired between Johnson and the initial dissenters was unclear, yet a legislator privy to the situation hinted at aspects of House process and spending cuts reforms being plausible factors.
Echoing similar demands, the conservative Freedom Caucus dispatched a letter to the House GOP conference post the election. Urging Johnson’s focus on legislative action directed towards securing borders, increasing healthcare covers, curbing inflation, among other things.
As the speaker’s election concluded, members could now be sworn in. Emphasizing unity under the newly re-elected speaker, speeches from party heads marked the event’s commencement. Even so, three Republicans opted for alternative candidates, causing Johnson to momentarily miss the 218-vote margin.
Discontentment towards Johnson among hard-liners was anticipated, making the vote deflections no surprise. Their backing was contingent, expecting fulfillment of specific demands, including negotiations inclusion for crucial legislation proposals. The solidarity of the House was questioned when vocal support was extended by Democrats towards Stacey Plaskett, a delegate from Virgin Islands.
Plaskett’s condemnation of the Congressional rule disallowing delegates from U.S. territories to cast their speaker votes, charged the Democrats into endorsive cheers, while Republicans focused on maintaining order. Following the exclusion of former Rep. Matt Gaetz from the 119th Congress, applause coincidentally, or rather predictably, erupted amongst Democrats.
Johnson’s handling of his dissenters demonstrated his dignity and focus. He ruled out any possibility of undertable dealings or negotiations. His promise was to evolve the institution into a more dynamic and purposeful body, rather than trading favors for votes.
Ahead of his re-election, Johnson advocated three commitments central to his second term as speaker. He planned the formation of an independent team of professionals aligning with the Department of Government Efficiency, intent on implementing novel spending reforms.
Johnson’s quest for the speaker position was closely monitored, his success awaited with cautious optimism. Irrespective of the number of voting rounds, Johnson’s victory was near-certain. Votes were cast in an open manner, each candidate declared vocally in an alphabetical sequence.
The pivotal number of votes was 218, a true test for Johnson, considering the tight margin of 219-215 being the current House strength. However, a noteworthy endorsement came from the President-elect Donald Trump, who used his influence to help mitigate some resistance within the conservative members.
Trump hailed Johnson’s potential victory as a great achievement for the party, hours before the vote. Compatriots pulling for Johnson entreated their colleagues to surpass personal discontent towards Johnson and focus on streamlining the House for the imminent certification of Trump’s 2024 electoral win on the following Monday.
Relatively drama-less procedures marked the Swearing-In of the 100 senators. Sen. John Thune (R-SD) found himself in the majority leader’s seat of the Senate. Commissioner of the second term, President-elect Trump will be sworn in anew on Jan. 20.