Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) said he won’t support Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) for a second term on Wednesday, citing concerns over the continuing resolution (CR) amid previous tension.
When asked why he wouldn’t back his fellow Republican, Massie told The Hill it was due to “all the grievances I had this summer, when we tried to vacate. And then this bill.”
Johnson is facing a slim Republican majority in the 119th Congress and can’t afford to lose Massie’s support, although the threshold for victory can lower if members vote “present” or are absent.
However, the Kentucky representative’s dissenting vote could still jeopardize Johnson’s path to leadership with previous GOP seats vacated by President-elect Trump’s appointments.
Democrats are likely to propel House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) to the post with 215 votes, leaving Johnson to scrabble for an overreaching three votes to secure the support of the 218 members required to win the position, assuming every representative is present.
The speakership may be up for grabs after House Republicans criticized Johnson for Tuesday’s CR, which came down to the wire.
“I think that it’s shameful that people that celebrate DOGE [Department of Government Efficiency] coming in, I can’t, and yet we’re going to vote for another billion dollars to be added to the deficit, and so it’s ironic. Personally, I’m disappointed,” Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) told reporters.
“I think that he can do better. He can communicate better,” Burlison said of Johnson on Tuesday. “The fact that we haven’t seen the language today, and we’re supposed to vote on it this week, is unacceptable.”
Others including Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) cited similar concerns originally flagged by Massie.
“People call me ‘NostraThomas’ for accurately predicting @SpeakerJohnson would use the Christmas recess to force a massive spending bill through Congress,” Massie said Tuesday.
“After claiming he would not, Johnson is embracing a D.C. tradition that’s nearly as old as decorating Christmas trees.”
Despite pushback, Johnson hasn’t relented. Over the past few weeks, he’s been working to woo fellow House members in preparation for the speaker vote.
Miranda Nazzaro contributed to this article.
