Shares of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) appear to have risen following former President Trump’s “pep rally” meeting with House Republicans on Capitol Hill.
Johnson has been criticized by hard-line conservatives for cutting deals with President Biden — which triggered an effort by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to remove the gavel — fueling questions about his future at the top of the conference.
But on Thursday, Trump sided with Johnson over those on the right flank, praising the House speaker’s performance in his still-nascent leadership term and joking to Greene that she should “be nice” to Johnson. Greene acknowledged the exchange and said Trump also noted her loyalty to him.
These dynamics bode well for Johnson’s political future, as he faces scathing – and public – criticism from hardliners who have vowed to prevent him from holding the gavel if Republicans maintain control of the lower house in November.
“He said he was doing a fantastic job,” said Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.), head of the Republican Study Committee, delivering Trump’s message to the conference.
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) offered a similar report, saying the former president is “absolutely” supporting Johnson heading into an election cycle in which Republicans are optimistic about his chances of winning all levers of power in Washington.
“He said he’s doing a good job — more than once,” Burchett said.
Johnson, for his part, was quick to highlight Trump’s praise after the hour-plus meeting, stressing the need for “continuity of leadership” – a not-so-subtle proposal to remain in charge next year.
“He said very complimentary things about all of us,” Johnson said. “He said I’m doing a really good job. We are grateful for that. We have to have continuity of leadership, we have to have a plan and it has to be executed very carefully.”
Johnson noted that he spends “a lot of time talking to President Trump about what happens after the election” and said he was scheduled to meet with the former president at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Monday. to discuss the campaign strategy for 2024.
Trump’s visit to the House GOP conference — which Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) described as a “pep rally” — was just one part of a shake-up in the nation’s capital that also included meetings with House Republicans. Senate and high-power leaders. business executives.
The meeting with House Republicans began on a jovial note, with GOP lawmakers singing happy birthday to Trump — he turns 78 on Friday — and Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas) presenting the former president with a game ball and a bat from the Republican Party’s decisive decision. beat the Democrats in the congressional baseball game on Wednesday.
But the conversation also included politics, with Trump touching on the issues of abortion, immigration, the border, taxes and being tough on China – some of which Johnson discussed on Wednesday in a meeting with Senate Republicans.
“You never put the cart before the horse, but we have to plan to lead because there are a lot of problems to solve,” he said. “So we’re working on that now.”
Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), echoing other lawmakers, said he found Trump’s meeting helpful to Johnson, expressing that Trump wanted Republicans to remain united on the big issues rather than fighting each other.
Still, Trump resorted to his instincts for political revenge.
The former president expressed satisfaction that nearly all of the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach him after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol are no longer in office, noting that Reps. Tom Rice (S.C.) and Liz Cheney (Wyo.) they lost re-election to Trump. -endorsed primary challengers.
And Trump made a reference to Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.), one of two remaining pro-impeachment Republicans in the House, saying he saved the California Republican by not supporting an opponent against him, according to a source. Lawmakers leaving the meeting described it as a friendly, playful joke.
Valadão did not attend Trump’s meeting. The other member who voted for impeachment, Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), was in the room, although he escaped Trump’s wrath.
Trump also entered into some other electoral assessment. He praised Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), a Trump critic-turned-supporter who won Tuesday’s primary against a challenger backed by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), whom she voted to remove. AND he supposedly warned members against working with Jeff Roe, a political strategist who boosted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ (R) presidential bid.
Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), who supported DeSantis for president and now faces a primary challenge from a Trump-backed candidate, ignored reporters’ questions as he left the meeting.
Trump referenced the number of lawsuits against him. But Johnson and other lawmakers said Trump made no specific requests to Republicans at the meeting to get back at prosecutors.
However, Johnson said House GOP leadership is working on a bill that is essentially a Trump defense measure. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Russell Fry (R-S.C.), would allow presidents to take state cases to federal courts. That could pave the way for federal prosecutors to drop the case or grant a pardon.
Trump also used Thursday’s meeting to promote a long list of policy priorities he hopes to pursue in a second term.
He attacked Biden’s border policies and promised to adopt much stricter measures like those he defended in his first term.
“We have to protect the border. We have to stop this massive influx,” said Rep. Mike Lawler (RN.Y.).
Trump has promoted the idea of using tariffs to help the interests of US companies in the face of foreign trade policies he considers unfair.
“He’s a big believer in tariffs, and I think he’s probably done more to impact the thinking of the Republican conference than [anyone else],” said Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee.
Trump also promised to end conflicts abroad, such as the one in Ukraine, which Republicans have blamed on Biden.
“As he mentioned, he had a great working relationship with China and Russia, and we didn’t have any wars,” Hern said. “And wars cost lives and are very expensive.”
On abortion, Trump called on Republicans to be cautious in how they talk about abortion in their elections, urging them to support exceptions and keep abortion policy legislated at the state – not federal – level, and defended exceptions for the procedure. doctor, according to two sources in the room.
Rep. Marc Molinaro (RN.Y.) said Trump told lawmakers “to show respect for women and the choices they have to make.”
Trump also offered to help Republicans campaign, including lawmakers in the toughest races. It’s unclear how many of these vulnerable incumbents will take up the offer, especially those in districts governed by Biden in 2020. But at least some of these Republicans say this strategy has distinct advantages.
“It reveals people who otherwise wouldn’t vote. So there’s a benefit to that,” said Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.).
Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.), another Republican from Biden’s district, said he was “pleased that a large portion of this [Trump’s message] it was in the economy and inflation.”
Others said Trump would certainly help Republicans vote no, even despite his recent felony convictions.
“He has more popularity and support than ever before,” Mace said.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
