Press Releases

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) issued the following statement after Congressman Mike Johnson (LA-04) was elected Speaker of the House:

“For the past three weeks, Republicans have fought amongst themselves while our allies were attacked and we inched closer to a catastrophic government shutdown. The fact that we finally have a speaker is good news for the American people, who were fed up with the Republican incompetence on public display for the last 22 days. It means we can get back to work passing laws, holding hearings, and delivering for the hardworking families we represent.”

“However, it’s important for folks to understand how Republicans got to Speaker Mike Johnson. Rather than work with House Democrats to find a bipartisan path forward, they cycled through candidates who represented all ranges of the ideological right. Steve Scalise was somehow too moderate. Jim Jordan was too problematic. And Tom Emmer was practically labeled a Democrat because of his votes to uphold the 2020 election and codify same-sex marriage.”

“Speaker Johnson has a history of supporting some of the most extreme policies put forward by hardline Republicans, but doing so in a way that is apparently more palatable to the so-called moderates in his party. He voted less than a month ago to force a government shutdown that would’ve hurt working families and devastated our economy. Speaker Johnson supports steep cuts to Social Security and Medicare benefits that millions of seniors depend on to make ends meet. He opposed a bipartisan bill to enshrine the right of same-sex and interracial couples to get married. Speaker Johnson wants to pass a nationwide ban on abortion care, including in cases of rape or incest. And he pushed bogus election fraud claims that led to the attack on the Capitol on January 6th and defended Donald Trump’s actions during his subsequent impeachment.”

“Each of these positions from Speaker Johnson are dangerous. They’re the opposite of what the American people want, which is for Republicans and Democrats to come together to find bipartisan solutions to the problems they face – problems that transcend partisan politics. House Democrats are committed to doing our part to solve those challenges, and Speaker Johnson now has an opportunity to uphold Republicans’ obligation to do the same.”

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