The Art of the Compromise: Mike Johnson's Strenuous Path Forward

It is a question that has become an intense matter of debate: who is Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) always on the phone with? Whether it be the conclusion of a press conference or a committee session, Johnson has become somewhat famous for his exits, speed-walking past eager reporters with a phone pressed to his ear, leaving onlookers to speculate the recipient (if there even is one) of his calls. 

Looking back, Johnson’s rise to political power has largely been unorthodox: for a majority of the six years that he has served on Capitol Hill, he flew under the radar as an obscure and far-right backbencher from a deep-red state.

Yet everything changed for the seemingly invisible Johnson during Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) tenure as Speaker. Last fall, following a sequence of events reminiscent of a coup d’état, McCarthy was abruptly ousted. What followed was equally chaotic, as House Republicans scrambled, and failed, for weeks to find the fallen Speaker’s replacement. In the end, it was Johnson—triumphant over more recognizable stars of the Republican party, like Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Steve Scalise (R-LA)—who emerged as the new Top Houser Republican—despite 43 percent of Americans not recognizing his name, as a poll conducted by NBC found.  In addition to his low national profile, his scant experience within the political ranks raised the most questions from both Democrats and Republicans: upon his promotion, he became the second-most inexperienced Speaker in history, with just 6.83 years in Congress compared to McCarthy’s 16. 

Since taking over from the ousted McCarthy, Johnson has struggled to maintain order in a still-largely chaotic House primarily due to his right flank, the far-right faction which is spearheaded by figures such as Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-FL) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL). Greene, Gaetz, & co. have remained a thorn in Johnson’s side, as they continue to oppose the legislature favored by Johnson. Take Ukrainian aid, for example. On many occasions, facing staggering yet non-negotiating demands from the far-right, Johnson has had to rely on House Democrats to pass critical aid for the war-torn nation, as the far-right remains critically opposed to financial assistance for Ukraine.

Further, under Johnson the government has narrowly avoided partial shutdowns on multiple occasions, saved only by last-minute funding bills that have additionally earned Johnson harsh disapproval from the far-right. This is because (like the dilemma of Ukrainian aid) Johnson has had to rely on Democrats to take the lead on funding bills. For the far-right, this bipartisanship and diplomacy on Johnson’s end is nothing short of a betrayal. 

 Johnson’s failure aside, the Speakership position has long been dubbed the “worst job in Washington,” and for good reason. In recent years, the Speakership position has become notoriously difficult, specifically for Republican holders, due to the party’s increased dividedness and the far-right’s increasingly stubborn nature. McCarthy remains the most recent victim of this inner-party turmoil, overthrown by just eight members of the far-right. 

Now, Johnson too is under threat of removal: following his passing of a $1.2 trillion spending package last month with help from the Democrats and the White House, Representative Taylor-Greene filed a motion for Johnson’s removal. A few days ago Taylor-Greene renewed that threat, placing Johnson’s job in greater peril; under the new rule the right flank had won while negotiating with McCarthy, a single member can trigger a “vote of no confidence” in the Speaker. 

However, when all seemed to be going downhill for the already battered Johnson, former President Donald Trump threw a lifeline. 

Last Friday, the pair stood side-by-side at a conference held at the ex-President’s resort of Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. Beaming with pride, Johnson looked on as Trump officially pledged his support to the Lousianian.  

“I stand with the speaker,” Trump declared, praising Johnson for “doing a very good job.” 

However, despite the significance that Trump’s words may hold, his endorsement of Johnson should not come to a surprise to many, for Johnson has supported the former President on multiple occasions. Back in 2020, Johnson encouraged over a hundred Republicans on Capitol Hill to sign onto a lawsuit challenging the results of the 2020 Presidential Election, of which Biden was victorious. Although the lawsuit ultimately was thrown out, to Trump, Johnson proved his loyalty.

Transitioning back to Trump’s remarks, it may appear that Trump has single-handedly saved Johnson from his predecessor’s fate. And by the expression on Johnson’s face, he shared the exact opinion. However, it must be remembered that Trump’s endorsement does by no means grant immunity within the Republican Party for the recipient. McCarthy’s spoiled political career is a case in point. 

Following Trump’s groundbreaking victory against Hillary Clinton in 2016, McCarthy immediately situated himself as close to the then-President as possible and took every possible opportunity to showcase his loyalty to the Trump Administration. Eventually, it seemed that his efforts had paid off: in addition to becoming known to Trump affectionately as “My Kevin,” when Speaker elections rolled around last January following Nancy Pelosi’s resignation, Trump encouraged Republicans to elect McCarthy to lead the House. 

Indeed, McCarthy eventually gained enough support, but the victory was short-lived. Just a few months later, a group of far-right Republicans, led by Matt Gaetz, motioned to hold a vote of no-confidence in McCarthy’s leadership. Unfortunately for McCarthy, the rapport that he had put so much time into building with Trump was for naught, for the former President did nothing to save McCarthy from being ousted. 

McCarthy’s fall from grace, which Johnson witnessed first-hand, brought forth a clear message: Trump’s support can appear and then disappear with the snap of his fingers.

However, it seems that Johnson has failed to heed this warning, as it seems increasingly likely that he aims to mold himself into a Trumpian speaker and shift further to the right. At the same time, he has already resorted to the same tactics as McCarthy, and Trump’s support has its limits, so Johnson cannot rely on Trump to save him. 

Bringing back the focus to the far-right in the House, Johnson must not cease to forget the tendencies of radicals such as Taylor-Greene and Gaetz.  As a result of a resurgence in right-wing populism spurred by the rise of Trump and his own unique political ideology, the far-right has become increasingly stubborn and continues to utilize a “my-way-or-the-highway,” ideology, meaning that they are unwilling to compromise and will only support legislature if their needs are completely met. This approach is great for garnering publicity and bringing one's leaders to their knees, but bad for governance. Johnson should heed the warning of his predecessor and know the support and loyalty of the far-right is unpredictable and unsustainable. Rather, he should be aiming to appeal to more moderate Republicans and diplomatic-minded Democrats.

Johnson is stuck between a rock and a hard place, but at the end of the day, he is the Speaker of the House. Moreover, it is this title that brings forth the burden of running a House that serves the best interests of the people, and part of this responsibility is passing legislation.

Johnson accordingly has two options to keep the government functioning: either the exceptionally slim Republican majority must put aside its internal differences and coalesce into a solid bloc, or Johnson will need to negotiate with the Democrats. Given that the first option has thus far proven impossible to both Johnson and his predecessor, Johnson must begin to appeal to those on the other side of the political spectrum. 

As has already been proven time and time again, the only way of appealing to the far-right is through wholeheartedly meeting their demands. This is a tactic that is detrimental to political progress and only places the power of the “people’s house” into the hands of the few. Indeed, in order to both stay in power and to remain a Speaker faithful to the American people, Johnson must continue to learn the art of compromise and reach across the aisle to cooperate with Democrats.