Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) praised House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) for the way he handles his role as the top Republican in the House, saying after a roller coaster few days, the Narrowly avoided a shutdown.
“Speaker of the House Mike Johnson is doing an extraordinary job. Let me tell you, I've been a pretty good speaker. I can never do his job. He can't afford it. “Two or three members of Congress could revolt at any time,'' Gingrich told John Catsimatidis on WABC 770 AM's “Cats Roundtable.''
House leaders went through multiple plans and finally passed a continuing resolution hours before the deadline to avert a government shutdown.
The impending shutdown leaves serious questions about how Congress will lead under President-elect Trump and whether he will be able to keep the gavel.
Gingrich praised Johnson's efforts to avert a government shutdown and urged Republican unity.
“They need a unified Republican program for the next two years. Guys who wake up every morning and say, 'I'm going to vote no. What's the problem?'” ,” Gingrich warned.
“That's why we need all Republicans to start this year with a pledge to come together. We're going to be one team,” he added.
Amid the chaos of the government shutdown, Mr. Gingrich suggested in an interview with Fox News last week that President Trump would be “better” if the government shut down.
“I think President Trump would be much better off shutting down the government, letting Biden sit there as a totally incompetent president presiding over chaos, and going to the country and saying to the country, 'I'm not going to do that.' The president who sells you out. We need your help to persuade Congress to pass good legislation,” Gingrich said at the time.
His comments in a Fox News interview meant that the bipartisan 1,500-page continuing resolution to keep government funding in place through the new year was a challenge to Trump's allies, including Elon Musk, and ultimately Trump himself. This was published amid criticism and controversy. That backlash led to Prime Minister Johnson's Plan B agreement, which was ultimately rejected in the House of Commons.
