'Game over' for Trump if he can't bend GOP to his will in his first big test: columnist

Appearing on MSNBC's "Way Too Early" with host Ali Vitali on Friday Morning, conservative columnist Matt Lewis suggested it would be "game over" for Donald Trump if he can't convince recalcitrant GOP House members to re-elect House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).

Speaking with the host, Lewis –– now a contributing columnist for "The Hill" –– was asked about Johnson's chances in the crucial vote to be held later Friday.

"I think it is going to happen because Donald Trump needs this to happen, ultimately he needs to be certified, as you were noting earlier," Lewis told Vitali. "I'm not sure we can certify the president without this election, without Mike Johnson or somebody becoming the speaker."

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"That doesn't mean that Johnson survives 2025," he cautioned. "I think that he's going to have an interesting year. It's almost like, you know, putting together a Rubik's cube –– some people can do it, I could never do it."

Asked about reports that the president-elect would be making calls in support of the current House speaker, Lewis replied, "Well, look, on one hand, I think it is very clear that Donald Trump is incredibly powerful within the Republican caucus. I have never seen such slavish devotion to anybody."

"On the other hand, you've got a couple of factors," he continued. "Number one, Trump's power and influence has never really been that transferable. Look at when he endorses candidates for Senate, they don't always win! Quite often, they lose."

"His track record for a while there wasn't that good, I think he got better later in the game," he added. "The other problem, too, is that you need unanimous -- like, it's such a narrow margin in the House, that Trump could win over 99 percent of House members, he could intimidate them, cajole them. But if you have one or two people, one or two [Rep.] Tom Massies (R-KY) who are stubborn, who are not intimidated, it's game over."

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