Noah Rothman steps into the host seat once again for this week’s second edition of The Editors. Ukraine aid is on the docket in the House, and when Noah asks Charlie Cooke to predict whether the bill will pass or not, Charlie takes a moment to applaud House Speaker Mike Johnson for the stand he’s taking on the issue.
“I’d like to praise Speaker Johnson,” Charlie says, “who, I think last night . . . effectively said at a press conference that he was done catering to the fringe, that he was not going to spend his time worrying about one or two members using the power they negotiated to oust him. That he had a job to do, a role to play, a place within the system. That he had his own views as to how he ought to use that, but that he also had to accept the views of the House as a whole. And that if he was kicked out as a result of this, so be it.”
Charlie says that while some on the left seemed happy about this but didn’t really trust Johnson, he doesn’t “know him and this is speculation, but watching his body language and his eyes, I did trust him. I think he meant it. I think in concert that he may be confident that he can pull it off.”
“I am heartened to see the speaker standing up for his role as the head of the House, who has responsibility for its business for both parties in effect. And I was heartened to see the confidence with which Speaker Johnson said these things.”
The Editors podcast is recorded on Tuesdays and Fridays every week and is available wherever you listen to podcasts.