Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA) cautioned against retaliating against House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) next month, stressing how in-party fighting could delay implementing President-elect Donald Trump’s work.
Carter’s comments come about a week after many Republicans criticized Johnson’s leadership in the House, most recently over his negotiation over continuing resolution and preventing a government shutdown. Amid the rumblings over whether House Republicans will get behind supporting Johnson, Carter confirmed he would “fully support” the House speaker, adding that he “deserves” to continue serving in the role.
MIKE JOHNSON AVOIDED A SHUTDOWN BUT COULD GET SQUEEZED OUT OF A SPEAKERSHIP FOR IT
“He’s done as good a job as anyone could have done with the cards that have been dealt to him,” Carter said on Fox Business’s Mornings with Maria Bartiromo, which was guest-hosted by Cheryl Casone. “I don’t see anyone else who could do any better than what Mike Johnson has done. The last thing we need right now is another situation like we had two years ago with Kevin McCarthy. Let’s hope that we don’t do that.”
Carter further explained how the first 100 days of Trump’s second administration will be “very, very important,” warning that a House speaker race is “the last thing we need” to implement Trump’s agenda. As such, Republican lawmakers need to unite in promoting the president’s agenda and enact the change voters want.
The assessment of Carter’s desire to avoid a fight for the role of speaker mirrors how Rep. James Comer (R-KY) predicted last week that many Republicans would reelect Johnson for the role of speaker to avoid another ongoing speakership fight in the vein of what happened in October 2023 when former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted. Comer also assessed that Johnson would retain his role of speaker due to how it seems he is Trump’s preferred choice.
Carter also addressed the topic of cutting down on government spending, which has become a major focus for the incoming Trump administration following the election. The lawmaker explained how it will be up to Congress to make the necessary cuts on spending that the Department of Government Efficiency Caucus identifies.
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“Yes, they can point out problems to us, point out where the waste, fraud, and abuse is and where we need to tighten up, but we in Congress are going to be the ones who have to follow through on that,” Carter said.
On Monday, Sen. Rand Paul’s (R-KY) published his annual government waste report, which revealed over $1 billion in wasteful spending, including taxpayer medical testing on cats, drag queen ice-skating, pickleball court construction, as well as the efficacy of magic. Last month, Paul expressed great enthusiasm for DOGE and how it can finally cut down on the government’s “leviathan” spending.
