meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Consider This from NPR

Who is Mike Johnson, new Speaker of the House?

Consider This from NPR

NPR

News, Daily News, Society & Culture, News Commentary

4.2 β€’ 6.2K Ratings

πŸ—“οΈ 26 October 2023

⏱️ 10 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

After three weeks of congressional paralysis, House Republicans have elected a new Speaker of the House: Mike Johnson of Louisiana.

There's a pretty good chance you've never heard of him. He's kept a low profile since he was first elected in 2016.

Here's what you should know: He's a conservative lawyer who opposes abortion and same sex marriage β€” and played a major role in attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Johnson is one of Trump's biggest supporters in Congress. Now he's House speaker. What does that tell us about how he'll lead the house β€” and work with the current president, whose election he tried to overturn?

Email us at considerthis@npr.org

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

After three weeks of congressional paralysis, House Republicans have elected a new speaker

0:12.3

of the House, Mike Johnson of Louisiana.

0:15.3

Therefore, the honorable Mike Johnson of the state of Louisiana, having received a majority

0:19.0

of the votes cast, is duly elected speaker of the House of Representatives to the 118th

0:24.0

Congress.

0:25.0

There's a pretty good chance you've never heard of Mike Johnson.

0:27.9

He's kept a low profile since he was first elected in 2016.

0:31.7

Here's what you should know.

0:32.7

He's a conservative lawyer who opposes abortion and same-sex marriage, and he also played

0:37.0

a major role in House Republicans' attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

0:42.3

But Republicans don't really want to talk about that.

0:54.5

You might also remember him as one of then-president Donald Trump's impeachment managers from

0:59.0

the first time Trump was impeached.

1:09.4

Johnson was Republicans' fourth choice to take the place of Kevin McCarthy, who was ousted

1:17.8

from his job at the beginning of the month.

1:20.2

Just conservatives in the caucus tanked the candidacy of Steve Scalice.

1:24.0

Then moderates blocked Jim Jordan from the job.

1:26.6

Tom Emmer didn't make it a day before conservatives undercut his candidacy after Trump framed

1:32.0

the Minnesota lawmakers bid as a, quote,, tragic mistake.

1:35.5

The caucus finally united around Johnson.

1:38.4

So consider this.

1:39.6

Mike Johnson is one of Trump's biggest supporters in Congress, and now he's House Speaker.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from NPR, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of NPR and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright Β© Tapesearch 2026.