‘Extreme Right-Wing Ideologue’: Jeffries Bashes New Speaker Mike Johnson Over Abortion & Support for Trump

Shortly before Rep. Mike Johnson was elected as the 56th Speaker of the House, Democratic House leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries attacked him as an “extreme right-wing ideologue.”

The House has been leaderless for weeks after a group of eight Republicans were joined by all Democrats to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker. Johnson was elected with 220 votes on the House floor Wednesday, ending the speaker chaos in the House.

Before that vote (and after), Democrats and pundits have blasted Johnson for, among other things, his abortion views, his past comments on LGBTQ issues, and his support of former President Donald Trump’s claims of election fraud.

Jeffries unleashed on Johnson during an interview on CNN before the Louisiana lawmaker was elected to the speaker’s office.

“I don’t know Mike Johnson well. Based on his track record, he clearly appears to be an extreme right wing ideologue,” Jeffries said during an interview on CNN This Morning. “Mike Johnson wants to criminalize abortion care and impose a nationwide ban. Mike Johnson was one of the chief architects of trying to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Mike Johnson also wants to end Social Security and Medicare as we know it. Those are extreme views.”

He added, “House Democrats will push back aggressively against that. However, at the same period of time, we said from the very beginning of this Congress and demonstrated that we are ready, willing and able to find common ground with our Republican colleagues in order to advance bipartisan solutions to solve problems for hard working American taxpayers. And all Mike Johnson will need to do is to meet us in a bipartisan way in that fashion, and we’ll be able to work together whenever and wherever possible.”

After becoming speaker, Johnson thanked his fellow Republicans colleagues and vowed to act swiftly on legislation that had been paralyzed due to the speaker chaos, including providing aide to Israel amid their ongoing war with Hamas.

Watch the full clip above via CNN.