Speaker Mike Johnson said his new job is ‘like an F-5 hurricane’ as he said the House will press forward with a party-line Israel aid bill and will soon decide whether to vote on impeaching President Joe Biden.
Asked how he was adjusting to the new job, the speaker said: ‘I’m from Louisiana so I describe everything and even football in hurricane metaphors. Let me say this is like an F-5 hurricane. It’s been a whirlwind but again, a great way.’
The new GOP leader said he was ‘humbled and blessed’ to have the support from all of his colleagues in the floor vote on his speaker nomination.
‘And we needed that to unify our conference and the energy that’s being felt around the country. I’m under no illusion. It’s not about me. It’s about this idea that we can unify this team together and get this job done for the country,’ he went on.
At the same time he revealed that the Biden impeachment inquiry would be nearing a decision ‘very soon.’
Speaker Mike Johnson said his new job is ‘like an F-5 hurricane’ as he said the House will press forward with a party-line Ukraine aid bill and will soon decide whether or not to vote on impeaching President Joe Biden
‘As we stand here today, I’m not predetermined that, but I do believe that very soon we are coming to a point of decision on it,’ the Louisiana Republican told reporters in his first news conference as speaker.
‘Next to a declaration of war, you could argue it’s the most it’s the heaviest power that we have and it cannot be wielded for political purposes,’ Johnson said.
Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, who has taken the lead on the inquiry, said Wednesday it is now in the ‘downhill phase’ and should wrap up soon.
Comer recently touted an image of a $200,000 check James Biden mailed to his brother Joe Biden as a ‘smoking gun,’ but the check was marked as a loan repayment.
The House must decide whether or not to hold a vote to impeach the president, as hardliner Republicans want, at the risk of looking like they’ve politicized the process if evidence is not sufficient.
Meanwhile Johnson said he plans to bring a vote on Israel aid to the floor on Wednesday afternoon, even as its pay-fors will render it dead on arrival in the Senate.
The bill would offer $14 billion to Israel, repurposing that money from a fund allocated for the IRS under the Democrat-passed Inflation Reduction Act.
‘$67 billion, it’s sitting over there to refurbish, build up and hire new IRS agents and you have to look at the scope and the importance of our commitments right now,’ Johnson said. ‘My belief is that this dire situation in Israel is so important.’
He reasoned that the national debt, sitting at $33 trillion is ‘the greatest national security threat’ above anything else.
Asked how he was adjusting to the new job, the speaker said: ‘I’m from Louisiana so I describe everything and even football in hurricane metaphors. Let me say this is like an F-5 hurricane. It’s been a whirlwind but again, a great way’
‘Ukraine (funding) will come in short order. We’ll do that next,’ the speaker said, adding it would be paired with border security.
House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar tore into the bill. ‘They’re seeking to condition life saving aid to Israel, for the sole purpose of making it easier for billionaires to cheat on their taxes.’
‘We’re learning a lot about this new speaker this week, with these first legislative decisions. And this has been a complete and total disaster,’ he added.
Still he wasn’t clear how the government would be funded when a government spending bill runs dry in two weeks.
Weeks ago former Speaker Kevin McCarthy put a continuing resolution (CR) to extend government funding at 2023 levels for six weeks while the House hashed out its funding battles.
Johnson said it’s ‘yet to be determined’ how the government will be funded when that bill expires on November 17.
‘Stay tuned,’ Johnson told reporters.
He said his initial idea was to pass a CR to extend government funding until January 14 and avoid a ‘jam’ during the holiday season.
The House has passed eight of 12 single-subject spending bills. After passing the 12 bills it must work together with the Democratic-led Senate to devise a negotiated spending path forward.