House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) may want to avoid shutting down the federal government, but former GOP strategist Rick Wilson warns that he may have little option.
Writing on his Substack newsletter, Wilson compared extremist House Republicans to "children with chainsaws" and said there was little chance of them not doing something self-destructive in the coming weeks.
In fact, he said that even if Johnson wanted to do something productive, he would refrain from doing so given his fear of being hounded out of office.
"The do-nothing Chaos Caucus rules the roost, still in possession of the magical motion-to-vacate artifact left over from last years 'Kevin McCarthy Must Die' jihad led by Matt Gaetz," Wilson argued. "Mike Johnson is fearful of wearing the wrong tie to work, to say nothing of trying to — heaven forfend — do anything meaningful for the people of the United States."
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Wilson said that the House GOP was likely on a collision course for a government shutdown, despite the fact that it knows such a move would be a political disaster. You can read Wilson's full analysis here.
"The GOP is holding the economy hostage again, despite the long history of this being a Very Bad Political Look," he noted. "Threatening — and actually implementing — shutdowns of government programs polls about like finding a turd in the punchbowl. Working for an economic disaster to help Donald Trump’s flailing campaign is a next-level approach to Gold in the political Darwin Olympics."
In fact, the history of government shutdowns — from the one led by Newt Gingrich in the 1990s to the one boosted by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) in 2013 or Trump's shutdown in 2019 to extract funding for his border wall — has seen Republicans forced by public pressure to reopen the government without achieving any significant policy concessions from Democrats.
A full-blown government shutdown may be coming, if reported rumors circulating among top Republican lawmakers are true.
In the power centers amongst the House of Representatives, there is chatter about a temporary stoppage of funding that could throw a wrench in the federal budget, according to a new Axios report.
"People are predicting a shutdown," one GOP lawmaker confided to the news outlet. "Even if it's just for a few days."
A subcommittee chair allegedly told a fellow House GOP member that members are either "close to reaching a deal or it's about to blow up."
The swirling rumors come months after Congress fended off a similar threat of a government shutdown passing a bill with an 87-11 total to back a temporary funding package.
