Gallego: Johnson ‘probably going to lose the Speakership’

Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego (Ariz.) said Thursday that Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) was likely to lose a chance at another term as House Speaker over his decision not to bring the lower chamber back in session amid the government shutdown. 

“Johnson sent his team home, not necessarily just to put pressure on us, but so he doesn‘t get pressure from his own members,” Gallego said during a Thursday appearance on CNN’s “The Source.”

“He‘s barely going to win, and he‘s probably going to lose the Speakership next year. But he‘s putting his members on a plank that‘s not reversible,” he added. 

Johnson clinched the Speakership for a second time earlier this year with overwhelming support from President Trump. During his first term with the gavel, he experienced harsh criticism from Reps. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) and Keith Self (R-Texas).

However, both ultimately voted for him to secure a second term. The only defect came from Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who has frequently expressed qualms with Johnson’s leadership style throughout the 119th Congress.

Amid the government shutdown, GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) has been a vocal critic of Johnson’s decision not to bring the House back in session and failing to provide a plan for the future of Affordable Care Act subsidies.

“I think he should really bring the House back in session for many reasons,” Greene told CNN in an interview Wednesday, while criticizing Johnson for stalling legislative business.

“Any serious Speaker of the House is going to build consensus within his conference behind a plan. It’s not something secret that gets worked on in a committee,” she said, referring to Republicans’ refusal to negotiate on extending the Affordable Care Act premium health care subsidies in exchange for Democratic votes to reopen the government. 

Senate Democrats have been blocking a stopgap measure from advancing in an effort to ensure Republicans back the extension of the Affordable Care Act premium subsidies before open enrollment on Nov. 1. 

However, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said the topic is not up for discussion until after the federal funding lapse is resolved. 

“It is a failure on Thune and Johnson, not necessarily because they‘re shutting down, but also they just didn‘t even bring it up to their membership. They didn‘t bring up, ‘Hey, we need to start negotiating to come up with a path out of this,’” Gallego told anchor Kaitlan Collins on CNN.