CNN
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Mike Johnson is taking steps to demonstrate alignment with the Republican Party’s most powerful figure, Donald Trump, as he faces serious threats to his chairmanship.
Mr. Johnson plans to travel to Mar-a-Lago on Friday to attend a joint news conference with the former president and speak about “election integrity,” a topic that Mr. Trump holds very dear. The development was first reported by CNN.
Meanwhile, Johnson’s allies have urged Trump to publicly support the speaker or at least stay out of any communications with House Republicans, according to sources close to Johnson and Trump. It is said that they are doing so. People also advised Johnson to keep President Trump informed about the yet-to-be-announced Ukraine aid package. It’s a politically dangerous policy issue that could anger President Trump, divide House Republicans and end Mr. Johnson’s tenure as speaker.
Efforts to stay in President Trump’s good graces could provide much-needed political protection for Mr. Johnson, who is trying to navigate a difficult process of governing carefully and avoid a potential right-wing revolt. Mr. Johnson’s strategy also signals Mr. Trump’s continued sway over the House Republican conference.
Johnson has long been an ardent supporter of Trump and played a key behind-the-scenes role in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election. CNN previously reported that after the election, Johnson sent an email from his personal email account to all House Republicans, announcing that he would be entering into a long-running Texas lawsuit seeking to invalidate electoral votes from Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. It was reported that a signature requesting support was requested. The case was ultimately dismissed by the Supreme Court.
But it may be difficult to prove that Mr. Johnson is fully aligned with Mr. Trump. In addition to pledging to provide some form of funding to Ukraine, which President Trump has sharply criticized, he is also trying to pass reauthorization of the controversial Foreign Surveillance Act. Those plans were thwarted after President Trump urged Republicans to kill the bill and hardliners forced a procedural vote on Wednesday.
Johnson told House Republicans in a closed session Wednesday that he spoke with the former president the day before. But when asked by CNN whether he had sought Trump’s support in the face of a potential vote to oust him, Johnson said: “I am not going to comment on my conversations with President Trump.” Ta.
Trump’s team also declined to comment on the call.
Mr Johnson added that if the motion to vacate the Speaker’s chair was passed, “there would be chaos in the House of Commons”.
Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of Trump’s staunchest supporters who has threatened to force a vote to remove Johnson from office, also told CNN that she had recently spoken with Trump, but that her efforts Trump did not say how he felt about the issue.
“I’m not speaking for the president,” Greene said Wednesday after a tense 70-minute meeting in the speaker’s office.
Asked about Johnson’s upcoming news conference with President Trump, Greene said: “I’m not concerned about that.”
A person familiar with the matter told CNN that Mr. Trump did not want to get into any more competition for the speaker.
Mr Johnson has vowed to tackle the Ukraine issue when MPs return to Washington from a two-week recess, and has so far kept his strategy to his heart’s content, holding further talks with members of the chamber this week. We are planning to talk.
But he has publicly floated several ideas for making the proposal more appealing to conservatives. For example, structuring the aid as a loan, an idea previously proposed by President Trump.
Several House Republicans told CNN that knowing Trump’s support for Ukraine policy would make them feel more comfortable working on it and would encourage Johnson to seek Trump’s buy-in.
“I hope the speaker has consulted Donald Trump on almost everything we do,” said Texas Rep. Troy Neals, a Trump ally. “If he doesn’t, he should.”
Oklahoma Rep. Kevin Hahn, chairman of the conservative Republican Study Committee, echoed similar sentiments.
“It would be helpful for the Republican Party to have President Trump on all fronts,” Hahn told CNN.
Some Trump allies who support aid to Ukraine expressed cautious optimism after the former president met with British Foreign Secretary David Cameron at Mar-a-Lago earlier this week. Prime Minister David Cameron called the meeting “good” and said he would continue to press for support for Ukraine when he meets U.S. lawmakers from both parties in Washington.
Prime Minister Cameron said that in his meeting with President Trump, he reiterated that aid to Ukraine is an investment in U.S. national security and that “the best thing we can do is keep the Ukrainian people in this fight.” Ta.
Two sources close to President Trump said there is no sign that the former president has changed his stance on funding to Ukraine.
Mr Green continued to urge Mr Johnson to halt plans for both the Ukraine aid and surveillance legislation.
“Right now he doesn’t have my support. I’m waiting to see what happens with FISA and Ukraine,” she said. “These are the two things we’re looking at with her.”
This article and headline have been updated with additional reporting.
