Mike Johnson Embraces House Freedom Caucus

“If you wanted a sense of how this shutdown is hardening Republicans’ views and creating unity in an otherwise fractured House GOP, Speaker Mike Johnson held a news conference with two leading members of the House Freedom Caucus this morning,” Punchbowl News reports.

“HFC Chair Andy Harris (R-MD) and Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), two of the most vocal members of the hardline right caucus, stood alongside Johnson in the Capitol on Day 20 of the shutdown.”

“Why is this important? Because Harris, a physician, and Roy, a candidate for Texas attorney general, are huge opponents of extending the enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are at the heart of the three-week-long shutdown. They’ve also been among Johnson’s most ardent GOP opponents since the day he became speaker.”