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by Mychael Schnell – 12/24/24 6:00 AM ET
A handful of conservative House Republicans were voicing concerns about Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to President-elect Trump even before last week’s government funding fiasco, multiple sources on Capitol Hill and in Trump’s orbit told The Hill, prompting even more uncertainty about the Louisiana Republican’s grasp on the gavel less than two weeks before the Speakership vote.
The Republicans had spoken to the president-elect in the weeks before the shutdown showdown, airing grievances and raising reservations about Johnson’s handling of various issues and his management of the House GOP conference, the sources said.
The sources — most of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive conversations — would not reveal the names of the Republicans who spoke to Trump out of fear of detailing private discussions. But the conversations were a mix of Republicans calling Trump with concerns about Johnson, and the president-elect asking members for a status report on the Speaker.
“Members are calling Trump to dump Johnson,” a Trump World source told The Hill before last week’s funding fight began.
A second source told The Hill that “members are sharing their discontent and concern and he’s observing,” citing Johnson’s “inability to decide, inability to get it done.”
“The president recognizes that [Johnson] is somebody he can push around,” they added. “I think he’s weighing the benefit of that with, can this guy get it done.”
A third source told The Hill “there’s real concerns about his ability to manage the place.”
“It’s just laying out what’s going on,” they added, arguing that Johnson’s handling of matters in recent months foreshadowed the current spending debacle.
“You can kind of see what was happening with this was going to happen,” they said.
The source said Trump “took it fine,” noting that the president-elect was focused on getting prepared for his incoming administration.
Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, told The Hill he was aware of Republicans talking to Trump about concerns with Johnson, noting that the discussions have been ongoing “for a couple of weeks.”
Norman said the GOP gripes have included “that the Democrats have ruled, and Johnson doesn’t fight.”
