It's Monday, October the 30th, 2023. Welcome to the Daily Article Podcast. I'm Chris Elkins with the

Denison Forum, narrating today's article written by Dr. Ryan Dennison. Israel began its incursion

into Gaza over the weekend, and as we wait for further details to emerge, that will be the focus

of tomorrow's daily article. Today, however, I'd like to discuss the new Speaker of the House,

Mike Johnson, and some comments that are revealing of both the divide among those he is charged

with leading and what we might expect from his time as speaker. Johnson has represented Louisiana's

fourth congressional district since 2017. Prior to running for office, however, he was a lawyer with the

Alliance defending freedom and defended the state's anti-abortion laws and same-sex marriage ban. While he has

never chaired a committee in the House, he has served in

increasingly prominent roles as his terms in Washington have progressed. Still, the fact

remains that he has spent less time in the House of Representatives prior to becoming

speaker than any other speaker in the last 140 years. That inexperience, however, might be part of why he eventually was selected.

As Representative Tom Cole of Oklahoma put it, politics is like the fight business. The longer

you're in it, the more beat up you get. It's likely that Johnson benefited from his relative

anonymity when compared with those who had sought the role before him.

That anonymity, however, has also resulted in a steady stream of deep dives and strong opinions on the new speaker

across the day since he ascended to that role. The stories have largely fallen along partisan lines,

with one side seemingly convinced he's going to save the government,

while the other is convinced he'll usher in its final downfall.

What's most interesting, however, is that both sides are largely relying on the same evidence to draw those conclusions.

It is a clear example of the divide that exists between political parties in our culture today,

and offers us the chance to discuss two aspects of Johnson's career to date that might be

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