Mike Johnson Acknowledges Biden's Presidency Is 'God's Will'

House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Wednesday that Joe Biden's presidency is "God's will."

The Louisiana Republican and evangelical Christian took over House leadership in October following Kevin McCarthy's tumultuous tenure. Johnson, who has served in Congress since 2016 but whose platform and personal ideologies were not relatively known prior to taking the gavel, has faced scrutiny by some for views characterized by some as "dangerous."

He evoked scripture during his October 25 speech, saying: "The Bible is very clear that God is the one that raises up those in authority." He said that Marxism and communism fail because their ideologies do not stress a belief in God, and he espoused a pragmatic sentiment imploring all House lawmakers to take advantage of the gifts they receive from God.

On Wednesday, following a Republican conference meeting on Capitol Hill, Johnson was asked by a journalist if he thought Joe Biden's presidency was "God's will." Johnson harkened to the speech he made just before he was voted speaker.

"I said in my speech before I took the gavel that I am a Bible-believing Christian," Johnson responded. "A Bible-believing Christian believes what the Bible says, right? The Bible says that God is the one that raises up people in authority. I believe God is sovereign. By the way, so did the founders.

"It must have been God's will then. That's my belief, right, but I think that a nation makes a decision collectively 'cause we're given the free will to do that, and I think we're gonna make a much better choice as a country coming up in this election cycle. We're very much looking forward to that regime change."

Days after he took the gavel, Faithful America, an online Christian group that supports social justice causes, warned that Johnson could be the "most dangerous Christian nationalist leader" in the U.S. government.

Amanda Tyler, executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty and lead organizer of Christians Against Christian Nationalism, testified before Congress about the perils of Christian nationalism—warning of the potential implications on a national scale, on the same day that Johnson won the speakership.

"In his first act as speaker, Johnson claimed God gave each member of the U.S. House authority," Tyler told Newsweek following her testimony. "As a Christian, I reject Christian lawmakers using language that alienates and excludes lawmakers and Americans of different faiths from the political process.

"While it is common for people of faith to feel called to their vocations, Americans dedicated to religious freedom for all are understandably alarmed by elected officials claiming to be God's chosen."

In December, while giving a keynote speech at the National Association of Christian Lawmakers' (NACL) annual meeting and awards gala, Johnson compared his ascent to speaker to Moses' "Red Sea moment."

Johnson, who is an ardent supporter of former President Donald Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, received praise from the former president when he took the gavel. Johnson is currently mired in a tense negotiation—not just with Biden and Democrats but members of his own conference—to avoid a potential government shutdown.

He agreed to a deal in principle with Biden and Democrats that includes $704 billion for non-defense and $886 billion in defense spending to be allocated by the Appropriations Committee for specific government departments and agencies. A separate $69 billion deal in adjustments in non-defense spending was also reached.

The January 19 deadline for a shutdown deal is looming large, however, as members, mostly from the House Freedom Caucus—which consists of about 40 conservatives—have expressed apprehension about another deal that would further increase the national debt.