In the News

The Congressional Black Caucus vowed Wednesday (Oct. 25) to fight “extreme MAGA ideologies” after House Republicans elected Rep. Mike Johnson as speaker, ending weeks of political turmoil that stalled critical legislative activities.

“It is unfortunate and unsurprising that the candidate House Republicans chose to rescue their Party from the infighting and self-dealing that ousted their own leader and left our country without a House Speaker for the first time in history, is a MAGA extremist who plotted with former President Trump to overturn the 2020 election,” the CDC said in a statement sent to BET.com.

House Republicans unanimously voted for Johnson, a staunch Louisiana conservative who aided former President Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election. His ascension to the speakership, placing Johsonson second in line to the presidency, follows extreme right-wing GOP lawmakers ousting Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker on Oct. 3.

Johnson, 51, was the House GOP’s fourth nominee to replace McCarthy. Moderate Republicans rejected Rep. Jim Jordan, a hard-right lawmaker and Trump ally, multiple times in embarrassing losses on the House floor. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries won more votes than Jordan but not enough to win the speakership.

Behind closed doors, right-wing Republicans rejected moderate candidates Rep. Steve Scalise and Rep. Tom Emmer, forcing them to quit the speaker race before going to the floor for a vote. They ultimately settled on Johnson, a low-ranking member of the House, who has Trump’s support.

Johnson, the eldest son of a Shreveport firefighter, has kept a low profile since winning election to Congress in 2016.

He claims to understand racial discrimination after taking “custody” of a disadvantaged 14-year-old African American boy named Michael, now an adult, bringing Michael into the family when he and his wife were newlyweds, The Advocate reported in a 2019 article about Johnson’s comments during a hearing on reparations and racial justice.

"Many of my colleagues in this committee may not be aware, in addition to our four children at home, my wife and I have a much older son who happens to be African American," Johnson said. "We took custody of Michael and made him part of our family 22 years ago when we were just newlyweds and Michael just 14 and out on the streets and on a dangerous path."

Johnson added, “I personally know the challenges he has faced early in his life. I've walked with him through discrimination that he's had to endure over the years and the hurdles he faced."

As a lawmaker, Johnson has a lifetime rating of 92 percent from the Conservative Union, consistently voting against bipartisan measures that President Joe Biden supported, NBC News reports.

“We arrived at this moment because of House Republicans’ chaos which, for 22 days, spilled into public view and brought the House to a standstill,” the CDC said. “Instead of joining with House Democrats on charting a bipartisan path forward, House Republicans unanimously elected a Trump-backed extremist who wants to criminalize abortion and cut programs like Social Security and Medicare.”