Mike Johnson’s Critics Have No Clear Alternatives

“Even House Republicans who are skeptical about keeping Mike Johnson on as speaker acknowledge they have a persistent problem: Who could replace him?,” Politico reports.

“As Johnson faces potentially a dozen holdouts or more going into the speakership vote on Friday, three familiar alternative candidates have come up in internal GOP conversations: Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana, Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan of Ohio and GOP Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota.”

“All three ran for the speakership in October 2023 before Johnson was elected to take the gavel, and all three were forced to drop their bids as it became obvious they couldn’t get the near-unanimous support needed from House Republicans.”