Mike Johnson Got Elected, But Matt Gaetz Is the Big Winner of GOP’s House Speaker Battle

I want to take a moment to congratulate Rep. Matt Gaetz. You did it, man! “MAGA Mike” Johnson (as Gaetz affectionately calls him) is the new Speaker of the House of Representatives.

In case you’ve forgotten, Gaetz spearheaded the effort to oust then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Oct. 3. But in the intervening days, it was unclear whether McCarthy’s exodus would lead to a Trumpier replacement (such as Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan) or a more establishment type (such as Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer). Today, it is clear that Gaetz’s move paid off. Johnson played a key role in trying to help Donald Trump overturn the 2020 election.

Now, in fairness, it’s unclear how newly-minted House Speaker Mike Johnson, 51, will lead. But those who view election denial as the sine qua non, as Trump clearly does (that’s the reason Trump sunk Emmer, who voted to certify the 2020 election), have good reason to believe that the Big Lie has been, thanks in large part to Gaetz, deeply embedded into the GOP’s leadership.