Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) lamented the mistake of electing Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) as House Speaker on Friday morning.
“Switching from McCarthy to Johnson was the biggest mistake I’ve seen conservatives make in my decade of serving in Congress,” he wrote in an X post.
“Second biggest mistake is when Freedom Caucus voted for Paul Ryan after we got rid of John Boehner,” he added. “It’s like ground hog day.” Switching from McCarthy to Johnson was the biggest mistake I’ve seen conservatives make in my decade of serving in Congress.
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) August 16, 2024
Massie, a member of the House Freedom Caucus, voted for Johnson last October for House Speaker after the ousting of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.). The Louisiana representative's election followed nearly a month of House Republican infighting after Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) spearheaded an effort to remove McCarthy.
In a separate Friday morning post, Massie criticized Johnson for proposing a three- to six-month Continuing Resolution, or CR, which is a form of legislation that permits the federal government to operate at current funding levels for a certain period of time. CRs offer temporary funding until a more permanent budget can be agreed upon.
“Want to know why Speaker Johnson is proposing a 3 to 6 month CR instead of a one year CR?” Massie asked. “Because there’s a provision I got put into law a year ago (aka Massie Plan) that says if we go BEYOND 6 months on a CR (past April 2025), spending gets cut to 99% of 2023.”
“What should the House do on or before Sept. 30, 2024 when the spending deadline hits?” he continued. “We should pass 12 separate bills and tell the Senate to take it or leave it, but we won’t. So we should pass a 1 year CR as an insurance policy: if Kamala wins the election, spending gets cut!”
In response to an X user who suggested spending should be cut more drastically, Massie said, “True, but look what I have to work with. Even republicans won’t agree to a one percent cut.” True, but look what I have to work with. Even republicans won’t agree to a one percent cut.
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) August 16, 2024
In April, Massie became the first Republican lawmaker to co-sponsor Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-Ga.) motion to vacate Johnson from his position as House Speaker.
"He should pre-announce his resignation (as Boehner did), so we can pick a new Speaker without ever being without a GOP Speaker," he wrote.
“He said he won’t resign. I said to him that he is the only one who can prevent us from going through what happened last fall,” Massie added.
At the time, Johnson called the resignation request "absurd" while speaking to reporters.
“I am not resigning and it is, in my view, an absurd notion that someone would bring a vacate motion when we are simply here trying to do our jobs,” Johnson said during a press conference. “It is not helpful to the cause, it is not helpful to the country, it does not help the House Republicans advance our agenda which is in the best interest of the American people here — a secure border, sound governance — and it’s not helpful to the unity that we have in the body.”
Cassandra MacDonald contributed to this report
