The GOP-aligned group Republican Accountability Project on Wednesday announced a six-figure ad campaign aimed at highlighting House Speaker Mike Johnson's "extremism around the 2020 presidential election."
Johnson, R-La., who was voted in last week as speaker, needs to navigate the same tensions between House Republican hardliners and centrists that led to the historic ouster of Johnson's predecessor Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., last month. Those tensions are already threatening to undermine support for this week's appropriations bills, which would fund congressional operations; transportation, housing and urban development; and the Department of the Interior and the environment through Sept. 30, 2024.
"Republican Mike Johnson just became speaker of the House. But he's the last person who should be leading Congress," the ad states. "After Donald Trump lost the election, Johnson started pushing Trump's 'Big Lie,' pressuring the Supreme Court to overturn the will of voters in four states. And after the Jan. 6 insurrection, Johnson still refused to certify the election results in Arizona and Pennsylvania."
It closes by saying, "Trump wanted to steal your vote. Speaker Johnson helped him. Today's GOP: A danger to our democracy."
Gunner Ramer, political director for the Republican Accountability Project, in a statement said the GOP "decided to elevate one of the most extreme candidates for Speaker that it could find" in Johnson.
"While most people have never heard of him before, Mike Johnson has spent years quietly executing Donald Trump's plans to subvert democracy and overturn the will of the voters. His Speakership shows that the MAGA takeover of the Republican Party continues."
Information from Reuters was used in this report.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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