Zinger Key Points
- The House elected Mike Johnson with a majority of 220 votes as opposed to the 209 votes received by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
- Johnson had campaigned for supporting efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.
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Republicans finally came together to elect a candidate for the House Speaker post and not everyone is happy with the development.
What Happened: Donald Trump’s niece Mary Trump, who claims to be on the pro-democracy camp, came down hard on the newly-elected House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) In a post on X, formerly Twitter, she said, “F**king Mike Johnson, election-denying MAGAT is now second in line to the presidency.”
“The fascists are now in charge,” she added.
If the president is unable to carry on the duties of the office, the responsibilities are passed on to another government leader in a specific order, according to the Presidential Succession Act of 1947. The vice president is first in line to take over followed by the House Speaker.
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Why It’s Important: Johnson belongs to the conservative camp of the GOP and is a far-rightist. In his role as the Republican caucus vice chair, he played a major role in clamoring for overturning the 2020 elections.
A staunch supporter of Donald Trump, he was among the signatories of an amicus brief signed by more than 100 House Republicans in favor of a lawsuit in Texas that sought to invalidate the 2020 election results in four swing states won by President Joe Biden, namely Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Incidentally, Donald Trump has welcomed the election of Johnson. Speaking outside a New York court on Wednesday, the former president said, “I’ve known him for a long time. He’s a tremendous leader and a tremendous man.”
After the House remained without a speaker since Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif) ouster in early October, GOP members wrangled over a potential successor. On Wednesday, the House elected Johnson with a majority of 220 votes as opposed to the 209 votes received by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).
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