Editor’s Note: As this article was being written the House of Representatives was able to pass a temporary funding bill with bipartisan support.
On October 25th, after 22 days and 4 ballots Mike Johnson was finally elected to be the speaker of the U.S House of Representatives with unanimous support from house republicans. Despite being elected to one of highest positions of the US government he is still relatively unknown in politics. So, who is Mike Johnson and what can we expect from him?
Prior to politics Mike Johnson was initially a lawyer who specializes in constitutional law. He represented the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Chirstian organization that opposes abortion and gay marriage. He also founded the Freedom Guard which was made to represent Christan clients.
Mike Johnson began his political career in the Louisiana state House of Representatives after running unopposed during a special election in 2015. During his 2-year tenure Johnson sponsored several bills such as the Marriage and Conscience Act which would have made it easier for people to discriminate against same sex couples under the claim of religious freedom. The bill was ultimately blocked although a similar executive order was signed shortly thereafter by the Governor of Louisiana.
In 2017 Johson became a member of the U.S House of Representatives where he represented Louisiana’s 4th congressional district which covers the northwest portion of the state. Since then, he has served on the armed services committee, the judiciary committee, and was the vice chairman of the republican conference.
Throughout his service Johnson has face criticism from many for his hardline conservative views. He has cosponsored several bills that would’ve restricted abortion access nationwide such as the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act and Heartbeat Protection Act. He has also opposed same sex marriage stating in an editorial “Homosexual relationships are inherently unnatural and the studies clearly show, are ultimately harmful and costly for everyone.” He has also supported stripping protections and even outlawing same sex marriage. One of the most glaring concerns has been in his role in the plot to overturn the 2020 election where he was one of 120 representatives to object to the certifying of the election and regularly made claims about election interference on social media and to news sources.
“I have just called President Trump to say this: ‘Stay strong and keep fighting, sir! The nation is depending upon your resolve. We must exhaust every available legal remedy to restore Americans’ trust in the fairness of our election system,’”
— Mike Johnson
It is ultimately unclear exactly what to expect from Johnson’s speakership he has already indicated plans to push legislation to address border security and aid to Ukraine. He has also already passed 14.5 billion dollars in emergency aid for Israel. The number one challenge for the new speaker will be facing the impending government shut down.
He’s been unable so far to pass legislation to avoid a government shutdown as the US government will run out of money and shut down on November 17th unless a budget is passed. Last time the government almost shut down back in October then speaker Kevin Mcarthy ultimately lost his position after working with democrats to pass a temporary funding bill. It will be a challenge for Johnson to rally his divided party to avoid a shutdown and ensure everyone is happy.
