Mike Johnson: GOP's New Speaker Nominee
The Republican Party has just announced their latest nominee for the role of Speaker of the House of Representatives: Congressman Mike Johnson. This marks the fourth nomination in the ongoing saga, with the three previous contenders failing to secure enough support from their colleagues. Johnson's selection took place following three rounds of voting late on Tuesday.
The House has been without a Speaker, rendering it unable to pass essential legislation since the ousting of Kevin McCarthy on October 3rd. The nomination of Louisiana's own Mr. Johnson, who is 51 years old, was officially revealed by House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik.
With a narrow majority over the Democrats in the lower chamber of Congress, Republicans are well aware that their nominee can only afford to lose a few votes from their own party and still secure the position.
The decision to nominate Mr. Johnson came shortly after the withdrawal of the prior nominee, Majority Whip Tom Emmer. Emmer dropped out due to his inability to garner sufficient support. It remains uncertain whether Johnson will secure the 217 votes required for a simple majority in the House to claim the Speaker's gavel.
During the earlier voting rounds on Tuesday, Johnson had been in second place behind Emmer. However, Emmer withdrew his candidacy after receiving criticism from former President Donald Trump. In the final round of voting, Johnson obtained 128 votes, while Congressman Byron Donald came in second with 29.
Johnson's nomination is scheduled for a full House vote as early as Wednesday afternoon. Should he fail to secure the necessary votes, the Republicans will need to go back to the drawing board once more.
Wisconsin Congressman Mike Gallagher expressed doubts about Johnson's ability to secure enough votes in the House, stating, “We keep doing the same thing over and over again, which I think is the definition of insanity, last time I checked.”
Mike Johnson, an attorney and former talk radio host, has been serving in the House since 2016. He also previously chaired the Republican Study Committee and is considered a close ally of Mr. Jordan. Notably, in 2020, Johnson played a significant role in the effort to object to Joe Biden's victory in the presidential election.
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