House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) last-minute push to boost Republicans in key midterm races drew a mocking response Tuesday from conservative analyst Jonah Goldberg.
Johnson is kicking off a campaign swing through Pennsylvania before heading to Michigan and Iowa, with additional stops planned later this month, CNN’s Jake Tapper noted on his show, “The Lead.”
“Does Speaker Johnson help get out the vote?” Tapper asked.
“I mean, who can contain their excitement about the idea of Speaker Johnson?” Goldberg quipped, prompting Tapper to laugh on set.
But Goldberg, co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Dispatch, argued Tuesday that Johnson’s itinerary could reveal something far more important: where Republicans believe they are in trouble.
“The Republican Party does really good polling, and the Democratic Party does really good polling,” Goldberg said. “Where Johnson goes will be a really good test of what their own polling shows.”
And some of Johnson’s destinations caught Goldberg’s attention.
“He’s going to some places he shouldn’t be going to this late,” he said, pointing to Montana and Iowa as states that appear to be “slipping away.”
“Watch the feet rather than the mouth,” Goldberg added.
The conservative political analyst also made the case that Republicans face a broader problem with President Donald Trump.
“Trump’s philosophy is what America needs is more cowbell,” Goldberg said, “and so he’s going to go around ringing it all around the country.”
“To the glee of a lot of Democrats who want this to be all about Trump," he added.