Questions about Speaker Mike Johnson’s position in the House’s top job are beginning to bubble to the surface as President-elect Donald Trump rails against the short-term government funding proposal unveiled this week, days before a potential shutdown this weekend.
Asked about his confidence in the speaker’s leadership following the release of the funding agreement, known as a continuing resolution, in an interview with NBC News on Thursday, the president-elect was noncommittal.
“We'll see,” Trump told NBC News. “What they had yesterday was unacceptable.”
At the same time, Trump told Fox New Digital on Thursday that Johnson could “easily” keep his role in the next Congress, depending on how he handles the funding situation.
"If the speaker acts decisively, and tough, and gets rid of all of the traps being set by the Democrats, which will economically and, in other ways, destroy our country, he will easily remain speaker," Trump told Fox News Digital.
The release on Tuesday night of a more than 1,540-page continuing resolution that would avert a shutdown ahead of a Friday night deadline sent some congressional Republicans and close Trump allies, particularly billionaire businessman Elon Musk, into a frenzy on Wednesday.
The agreement would keep the government funded at essentially current levels until mid-March, when new Republican majorities in both the House and Senate and a GOP-led White House will be tasked with working out a full budget for the rest of the fiscal year. But it also includes additions such as the $100 billion in disaster aid, $10 billion in economic aid for farmers, a commitment to cover the cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland, pay raises for lawmakers and more that had some in the GOP fuming.
In a post Wednesday evening on his social media site Truth Social, Trump referred to the legislation as a “nasty TRAP set in place by the Radical Left Democrats." He also called for an agreement to raise the debt ceiling to be included in a short-term deal to fund the government before he takes office.
Democrats still control the Senate and White House until next month and any agreement to keep the government funded past Friday needs support from both sides. Trump on Wednesday, however, told Republicans to "CALL THEIR BLUFF" on shutting down the government.
The proposal also had some lawmakers on the Hill questioning whether they will support Johnson as speaker again when the new Congress convenes on Jan. 3, drawing parallels to former GOP Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s ousting from the role that was sparked by outrage over a continuing resolution.
Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie told reporters Wednesday that he was a "hell no vote" on the spending bill and will not be supporting Johnson next month. He added that it would take a "Christmas miracle" to change his mind.
Rep. Eli Crane of Arizona, one of the eight House Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy, told CNN “we’ll see about Jan. 3” when asked if he would still support Johnson.
Although senators do not vote on the speakership, Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul stirred questions about Johnson’s leadership in a post on X, saying his handling of the funding deadline shows he is a “weak, weak man.”
Paul also suggested that the House elect Musk as its next speaker, noting that the Constitution does not explicitly require the position to be held by an elected member of Congress.