Representative Thomas Massie told reporters on Friday that House Speaker Mike Johnson has “poorly handled” pushing a spending bill through the lower chamber as Congress approaches the deadline for a government shutdown, adding that Johnson will only get reelected “with a lifeline” from former President Donald Trump if the GOP presidential nominee wins in November.
The House on Wednesday rejected a stopgap bill backed by Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, that would have extended government funding levels through March. Lawmakers have a deadline of September 30 to pass a spending bill to avoid a government shutdown just weeks before voters cast their ballots on November 5.
Massie, a Republican from Kentucky who expressed frustration with Johnson’s spending bill ahead of Wednesday’s vote, voted “present,” alongside Georgia GOP Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene. The measure was struck down 202 to 220, with 14 Republicans voting against it.
“This was very poorly handled,” Massie said Friday of Johnson’s spending bill, according to Fox News senior correspondent Chad Pergram.
“I would say it’s par for the course because I’ve been here 12 years. Except I actually think Kevin McCarthy would have done much better,” Massie added, referring to the former House speaker who in October was ousted from his position after conservatives raised issues with the Republican pushing a bipartisan spending bill.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson departs a news conference with Republican leadership on September 18 in Washington, D.C. GOP Representative Thomas Massie took a swipe at Johnson’s handling of the stopgap bill that failed to pass in the House earlier this week.
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“I think the only way Mike Johnson really gets reelected Speaker is with a lifeline from Trump should Trump win the White House,” Massie added. “People have short memories. You know, he only needs the lifeline the day of the vote.”
Newsweek sent a note to Johnson’s office via email Friday for comment.
Johnson told reporters on Friday that he met with Trump to discuss the short-term spending bill and said that the former president “understands the situation that we’re in.”
“We’re going to press that at every opportunity we use, every vehicle coming out of this chamber and every platform that we have to make that message loud and clear,” the speaker added. “That’s President Trump’s priority and that’s mine as well, and stay tuned for the rest of it.”
Johnson’s bill on Wednesday tagged on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require American voters to provide proof of citizenship in person when registering to vote in a federal election. Opponents of the bill have said that the measure would place an unnecessary burden on voters, but Trump and his allies have pushed hard to have the bill signed into law, claiming that Democrats are registering noncitizens to vote in the fall.
Trump posted to his Truth Social account hours before Wednesday’s vote that Republicans should not vote for the stopgap bill unless they get “every ounce” of the SAVE Act included. Johnson told reporters on Friday that he and the former president are “doggedly determined to ensure that election security remains a top priority.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced on Thursday that he plans to move forward with a bipartisan spending bill in his chamber of Congress despite government funding measures typically originating in the House.
Senators on both sides of the aisle have also voiced concerns with extending funding until March, saying that the spending levels would not adjust to meet military and national security needs for the next six months. Instead, the lawmakers are proposing extending funding through mid-December, giving Congress more time to reach a long-term deal that would fund through the end of fiscal year 2025.
Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine said during a hearing Wednesday that the short-term bill “would provide our military with the resources it needs to confront the global threats facing the United States, which combatant commanders have described to me as being the worst and most dangerous in 50 years.”
