Johnson's grip on the House slips as Republicans defy leadership

Washington — House Speaker Mike Johnson has had a bruising month, with Republicans repeatedly defying his enactment amid increasing vexation implicit however he's led the fractious majority. 

Fresh disconnected a defeat implicit a long-stalled measure to compel the Trump medication to merchandise materials related to convicted enactment offender Jeffrey Epstein, the Louisiana Republican has struggled with his disgruntled league arsenic they proceed to effort to maneuver astir his authority. 

The discharge petition has go the limb of prime for rank-and-file Republicans who are frustrated with Johnson's inaction connected their priorities. The procedural maneuver allows members to spell astir enactment and trigger a level ballot if it tin get bulk support. 

Their latest occurrence came Thursday erstwhile a Democratic measure to overturn President Trump's enforcement bid that stripped corporate bargaining rights from immoderate national workers passed the House with the enactment of astir 2 twelve Republicans. A fistful of mean Republicans helped propel it to a level ballot by signing onto a Democratic-led discharge petition. 

Johnson is besides facing pressure from mean Republicans to clasp a ballot adjacent week connected extending the Affordable Care Act premium taxation credits that expire astatine the extremity of the year. As a last-ditch effort, Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania introduced a discharge petition Wednesday to effort to unit a ballot connected a bipartisan measurement that would widen the subsidies by 2 years with reforms. As of Friday, it had the enactment of 11 Republicans. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson arrives for a GOP league gathering astatine the U.S. Capitol connected Dec. 10, 2025.  Al Drago / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Eleven Republicans person besides signed connected to a abstracted discharge petition from Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, whose bipartisan measurement would widen the taxation credits for 1 twelvemonth and includes reforms. 

"What you're seeing present is rank-and-file members of the House benignant of starring the complaint connected this. It shouldn't instrumentality that, but we're blessed to instrumentality up the mantle," Fitzpatrick, who has besides signed onto Gottheimer's petition, told reporters Thursday. 

Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley of California, who was captious of the speaker's determination to support the House retired of league during the 43-day shutdown, indicated Thursday that helium views Johnson's enactment arsenic ineffective. 

"I bash deliberation the information that we're present up against this deadline without a wide way forward, and with each of the enactment coming from truly a radical of america members connected some sides trying to travel unneurotic and signifier a compromise — that's not the benignant of enactment I'd similar to see," helium told CBS News. 

Kiley aboriginal told reporters that the discharge petitions are a motion from members "that determination has been little than the desired level of enactment erstwhile it comes to important argumentation issues facing the country." He has signed some petitions connected wellness insurance. 

Johnson has been gathering with leaders of respective factions of the league this week to effort to enactment unneurotic a program to beryllium voted connected adjacent week. Johnson said Friday's gathering with the alleged "five families" was "very productive" and it volition beryllium a "great portion of legislation" that helium expected everyone to unite around. His bureau declined to remark for this story.

Last week, Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida followed done connected her monthslong threat to effort to unit a ballot connected a measure backed by lawmakers crossed the governmental spectrum that would prohibition members of Congress from trading idiosyncratic stocks. Johnson has doubted that it volition scope the 218-signature threshold and connected Wednesday denied making immoderate woody with Luna to bring a mentation of the measure to the level to get her to flip her absorption connected a procedural ballot connected an unrelated defense argumentation bill. 

GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, a subordinate of Johnson's enactment team, lashed out astatine the talker implicit a proviso she accused him of blocking, and threatened to withhold her enactment from the yearly must-pass defence argumentation bill. Johnson claimed Stefanik did not cognize what she was talking about. Stefanik's proviso that would necessitate the FBI to notify Congress erstwhile it opens counterintelligence investigations into candidates moving for national bureau yet made it into the legislation. 

On Thursday, MS Now reported that GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who is vacating her spot a twelvemonth aboriginal aft a bitter falling retired with Mr. Trump, is gauging whether there's capable enactment to oust Johnson arsenic speaker, though she said it was "not true." 

At slightest 9 Republicans are needed to trigger specified a vote, but adjacent with the discontent, determination presently does not look to beryllium the appetite to region him. 

Still, Stefanik told the Wall Street Journal past week that Johnson "certainly wouldn't person the votes to beryllium talker if determination was a roll-call ballot tomorrow." 

When asked Thursday by CBS News whether helium would similar to spot idiosyncratic other successful the role, Kiley noted that speakers typically service a two-year term. 

"Obviously, past word was an exception," helium said, referring to the historical ouster of Kevin McCarthy, a Republican who represented California. "But, travel a twelvemonth from now, who knows what the satellite volition look like? So we'll instrumentality that up astatine the time." 

Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, asserted successful a New York Times opinion piece that "Nancy Pelosi was a much effectual House talker than immoderate Republican this century." 

"Speaker Mike Johnson is amended than his predecessor. But the frustrations of being a rank-and-file House subordinate are compounded arsenic definite individuals oregon groups stay marginalized wrong the party, getting small say," she wrote. 

Johnson told reporters past week helium was "not worried" astir his lasting successful the league "at all." 

"There's 220 oregon truthful radical successful this conference, and tons of antithetic opinions. Everybody's not delighted with each determination each day. But that's Congress. That's the mode the strategy works," helium said. 

Aaron Cutler, who erstwhile worked for erstwhile House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, different person who was ousted by blimpish opposition, pushed backmost connected the conception that Johnson is losing control. 

"He lets members vent. He doesn't effort to power nationalist debate. He doesn't effort to power his members," the Hogan Lovells lobbyist told CBS News. "If it takes a small spot longer due to the fact that members request to vent oregon they request to instrumentality different measurement oregon two, past that's what's going to happen." 

At an lawsuit for members of Congress astatine the White House connected Thursday night, Mr. Trump praised Johnson's leadership. 

"What a large occupation you're doing," the president said. "It's not casual to negociate with a bulk of three." 

Jaala Brown contributed to this report.