Being the Republican House leader is a little like marrying Henry VIII. At some point, you’re getting your head cut off.
But for now, Mike Johnson remains not just physically intact—but in a position of incredible power.
Two weeks ago, Johnson was reelected speaker of the House on the first ballot. Despite having only the narrowest of House majorities—the Republicans control the House by four votes, 219 versus 215 Democrats—Mike Johnson was able to unite the Republican Party’s warring factions—moderates, the Freedom Caucus, the Raw Milk caucus, libertarians, hawks, doves, and whatever Lauren Boebert is—behind him.
It was tough to pull off, as it would’ve taken only a couple of “no” votes to send him off to that Republican Valhalla where John Boehner chain-smokes and chugs merlot, Paul Ryan does push-ups, and Kevin McCarthy throws darts at a photo of Matt Gaetz.
Today, Donald Trump will again be president of the United States, and Johnson will have the task of shepherding his agenda through Congress. And because the Republicans control the House by only four seats, the speaker might have to get very close to some moderate Democrats—particularly those with constituents itching for a tax cut.
Today on Honestly, Speaker Johnson breaks down this challenge. He talks about how the party moves forward with two different visions for America; why he thinks Joe Biden was “the worst president ever”; and he recalls an eerie experience with Biden in the Oval Office. He also sounds off on why Republicans in Congress live for drama, and how he understands the Silicon Valley titans, like Mark Zuckerberg, quickly pivoting to the right.
Watch our conversation in full below, catch it on the Honestly feed wherever you get your podcasts, or scroll down for an edited transcript.
This episode of Honestly is sponsored by Uber and X.
Why the House Republicans are so hard to manage:
Bari Weiss: Your predecessor, John Boehner, was pushed out of the speakership in 2015. Then we had Paul Ryan. Then we had Kevin McCarthy. It’s a lot of drama and a lot of chaos. You look at the other side of the aisle, and Nancy Pelosi was able to run things with an iron fist. What is it about Republicans that make them so ungovernable or hard to harness?
Mike Johnson: That’s a really good question: How come the Democrats stick together and Republicans don’t? And here’s my answer, and I think it will make sense to you. Democrats really are consistent in their philosophy. They think very much and operate very much like a union. They’re very collectivist in their worldview and their ideology. They move together as a pack. They’re all sort of social animals. It’s socialism, in some real respect. Whereas on the other side of the aisle, the Republicans are, by nature, more independent, rugged, individualist, and deeply rooted in our philosophy. And “you can’t tell me what to do!” and all that stuff. And that’s great. There’s a great blessing to that. I’m one of those people as well—until you have a one-vote margin, and you need everybody to move together. And so that is the challenge every day.
BW: You’ve sort of obliquely referred to some of the show ponies in your party. And it’s no secret that certain people—I’m thinking of Chip Roy, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Thomas Massie—they are the challenging wing of the party. How do you manage that group? And frankly, and if there’s a way to characterize that group, what do they want?