The Speaker of the House, "MAGA Mike" Johnson, gives "if" a huge job and sows the seeds of doubt rather than committing to certifying the election.
Maga Mike believes his God elected him to lead the House of Representatives and will only certify an election he feels was "free, fair, and safe." Johnson's prior history as an election-denying stooge of former President and insurrectionist reminds us that democracy in the United States is in for a rough ride.
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Johnson carved out an influential role after the 2020 election, helping Trump's attempts to subvert the will of the people and overturn the legitimate results. Many of his actions took place behind-the-scenes or didn't break through beyond his Louisiana district, while more prominent pro-Trump figures soaked up the post-election attention.
Like many Republicans, he questioned the legitimacy of Joe Biden's victory and raised concerns about the expansion of mail-in voting during the Covid-19 pandemic. His gripes echoed longstanding, garden-variety GOP complaints about mail-in voting, which largely ignore the reality that there is a staggeringly tiny level of fraud in US elections.
But he also promoted perhaps the most farfetched conspiracy theory bouncing around at the time: that two voting technology companies, Smartmatic and Dominion Voting Systems, flipped millions of votes from Trump to Biden as part of an international plot.
CNN
Previously:
• Jesus appointed me House Speaker and Moses, says MAGA Mike Johnson (video)
