Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) flouted Donald Trump's endorsement of embattled House speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) Monday.
The Kentucky Republican announced last week that he would not support Johnson's re-election bid as speaker as other GOP lawmakers indicated they were on the fence. He made it clear that he was unswayed by Trump's endorsement Monday of the Louisiana Republican as "a good, hard working, religious man."
"I respect and support President Trump, but his endorsement of Mike Johnson is going to work out about as well as his endorsement of Speaker Paul Ryan," Massie posted on X. "We’ve seen Johnson partner with the democrats to send money to Ukraine, authorize spying on Americans, and blow the budget."
Despite the discontent with Johnson, who was elevated to the post in October 2023 after Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was pushed out by fellow Republicans, it's not clear who would succeed him. A prolonged leadership battle after Congress is sworn in on January 3 could disrupt the certification of Trump's election win on Jan. 6.
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“I’m not persuaded by the ‘hurry up and elect him so we can certify the election on J6’ argument,” Massie said last week in an X post. “A weak legislative branch, beholden to the swamp, will not be able to achieve the mandate voters gave Trump and Congress in November.”
Trump will begin his second term as president on January 20 and intends to carry out a sweeping agenda from the start. He urged uncertain Republicans in an all-caps post to "not blow this great opportunity which we have been given" by opposing Johnson for another term as speaker.
Republicans have been vocally frustrated over the failure of a bipartisan spending deal that was killed by billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk, but Johnson ultimately got a deal passed that did not include Trump's provision to increase the debt ceiling.