Mike Johnson's Home State Newspaper Rips His Jan. 6 Connection

An newspaper editorial from the home state of new House Speaker Mike Johnson wishes the legislator well in the role, but cannot get past his words and actions after the 2020 presidential election.

Johnson, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 2016, took the gavel by seemingly galvanizing Republican support overnight. His election on Wednesday ended the 22-day deadlock that followed the ousting of Kevin McCarthy.

The little-known conservative from Louisiana was successful after failed attempts by three of his colleagues—Reps. Tom Emmer, Jim Jordan and Steve Scalise.

Rep. Matt Gaetz said Johnson was the second-most popular contender in the GOP's closed-door meeting behind Emmer—whose bid ended swiftly after former President Donald Trump called him a "RINO" (Republican In Name Only).

The editorial about House Speaker Johnson, published in The Advocate, the largest daily newspaper in Louisiana, said: "As a lawyer-strategist for overturning the legitimate and incontestable results of the 2020 presidential election—one of the reasons that former President Donald Trump is a fan—Johnson indulged in legal sophistry for political ends.

"That his arguments were ultimately dismissed was good for the country, but they're still an ugly chapter in the history books."

Pearson Cross, a political science professor at the University of Louisiana Monroe, told Newsweek via phone that Johnson first came to his attention by rising swiftly from the Louisiana legislature to become chairman of the Republican Study Committee, a conservative House caucus.

"I think that's when I was surprised there was this relatively quiet, button-downed guy from Louisiana who has elevated in Republican leadership after a very short tenure in the state legislature," said Cross.

The new House Speaker is a Republican leader "without the baggage," he added. "He hasn't been [in Congress] that long. I think he benefited from not having been there too long."

However, Johnson's actions in the wake of Trump's defeat—including his votes on January 6, 2021, not to certify the election of President Joe Biden—will be part of his long-term biography, according to Cross.

"It's gonna be kind of a byline that follows him around for the foreseeable future, that he led attempts to keep President Trump in office and was kind of the architect of the Republican [votes against Biden on that day]."

Johnson Was at Forefront of Helping Trump

Johnson, a staunch ally of Trump, was vocal almost immediately after the 2020 election.

"We must exhaust every available legal remedy to restore Americans' trust in the fairness of our election system," Johnson wrote on X (formerly Twitter) in November 2020.

He later filed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court supporting a Texas lawsuit that aimed to invalidate results in the states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Georgia.

It was signed by 125 other House members who accused the states of exploiting the coronavirus pandemic to ignore federal and state election laws and attempting to skew the results of the November 3 election.

In a statement previously sent to Newsweek, Johnson said: "Most of my Republican colleagues in the House, and countless millions of our constituents across the country, now have serious concerns with the integrity of our election system.

"The purpose of our amicus brief will be to articulate this concern and express our sincere belief that the great importance of this issue merits a full and careful consideration by the Court."

The Supreme Court denied the submission, however, citing Article 3 of the Constitution.

On January 6, 2021, Johnson was among the 147 congressional Republicans who voted against certifying the 2020 election results in Arizona and Pennsylvania in favor of Joe Biden. Eight were senators and 139 were House members. He was one of the 120 who contested the outcome in both states.

He later voted against a commission to investigate the storming of the Capitol on January 6, though he has since become more vocal in admonishing the violence seen that day.

Speaking on the House floor after Johnson's election, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the House Minority Leader, said it was "time to get back to doing the business of the American people."

Jeffries added: "Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election. He's doing a great job under difficult circumstances and no amount of election denialism will ever change that reality."

Newsweek has reached out to Johnson's office via email for comment.