Republicans pick Mike Johnson as U.S. House speaker, ending 3-week gridlock
globalnews.caIt took four candidates and just over three weeks, but the U.S. House of Representatives finally has a speaker.
Republicans united behind Rep. Mike Johnson in a full vote of the House on Wednesday, bringing to an end one of the most chaotic periods of political gridlock and infighting in modern U.S. history.
Johnson was selected by Republicans as their nominee for speaker behind closed doors late Tuesday night, just hours after far-right members blocked another nominee, GOP whip Rep. Tom Emmer.
The party spent weeks struggling to find a replacement for Rep. Kevin McCarthy, who was ousted as speaker on Oct. 3 by a faction of Republican lawmakers who voted for his removal alongside Democrats.
Since then, various factions of the Republican Party had been jockeying for control of the process, blocking nominees they didn’t like and demanding concessions from other nominees. Hardline conservatives scuttled the party’s first consensus pick, Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise, while moderates ensured those hardliners’ choice, Rep. Jim Jordan, failed in three full votes in the House last week.
It took Johnson, a lower-profile member from Louisiana, to finally achieve consensus. No Republicans voted against Johnson on the floor Wednesday, while every Democrat — as they had done throughout all previous votes — unanimously voted for their leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries.
“The challenge before us is great, but the time for action is now, and I will not let you down,” Johnson told the House as he claimed the gavel.
To the American people watching he said, “Our mission here is to serve you well and to restore the people’s faith in this House.”
The election of a speaker will now allow the House to get back to work on legislation, which
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