No Retreat: Johnson Joins Freedom Caucus in Tough Shutdown Stance

Two weeks into the government shutdown, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson is making clear he’s not interested in cutting any deal with Democrats and is assuring House conservatives that he’ll continue to advance aggressively conservative legislation.

On Friday, Johnson, R-La., joined a press call with the House Freedom Caucus, a conservative faction of the chamber, in which he emphasized his fundamental alignment with the group’s goals.

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., thanked the speaker.

“Today, Republicans are united in one goal, ending this shutdown, responsibly reining in reckless federal spending, and getting the federal government working again for the American people,” said Harris. “We are totally united in this effort with other Republicans and the speaker.”

On the call, the speaker gave his pledge to march forward on fiscal conservative priorities, rather than retreat amid Democrat demands.

The Daily Signal asked the speaker to explain House Republicans’ position on the expiring boosted health care premium tax credits for which Democrats are demanding an extension in exchange for reopening the government.

He stated his opposition to Obamacare, as well as his intention to promote further restructuring of the health care system and to oppose a clean extension of Democrat policies.

“How we view [the tax credits] is that it’s a terribly flawed system… [Senate Minority Leader] Chuck Schumer has ground the entire federal government to a halt over one small subset of tax credits in the Obamacare system, which is broken,” Johnson told The Daily Signal. 

“Everybody knows that. Obamacare did exactly the opposite of what Democrats promised us when they hoisted it upon the country,” he continued. “Remember, they swore to us that it was going to bring down costs. Of course, it did the opposite. The premiums are up 60% since 2010 when that bill was enacted.”

Johnson told The Daily Signal that he would be seeking buy-in from all of Congress, rather than pushing for a leadership-crafted solution on the subsidy issue.

“This subsidy issue … is an end of the year policy decision. It will take a lot of work to build consensus, if there is even any version of a reform … that we could find consensus and pass, but there’s no way for us to project today what that final outcome would be, because we’re in a deliberative body with 535 members, and it takes a lot of time to reach a point of decision on a matter like that,” he said.

A general complaint among Democrats in the current shutdown fight is Republicans’ use of party-line votes to advance their conservative agenda. Democrats’ alternative funding bill would undo all of the health care reforms of the July budget reconciliation bill and would also hamstring Republicans’ ability to rescind funding on party-line votes.

But Johnson made clear on the call that he’s not at all interested abandoning these filibuster-proof legislative vehicles after the shutdown drama.

“We worked on rescissions, and there’ll be more of that, we expect, in the days ahead,” said Johnson. Rescissions packages, a type of legislation which claws back unspent, previously appropriated funds, must originate in the White House.

He added of budget reconciliation bills, “We would like to do another reconciliation bill this fall, before the end of the calendar year, and potentially a third one in the spring, where we will also show more and more fiscal responsibility.”

“And then I’m absolutely bullish on us winning the midterm elections … next year. And when we do that, then we will really have the control,” he added.

This is a matter on which Freedom Caucus members appear to be united with the speaker.

Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., a former Freedom Caucus chair who was on the call, told The Daily Signal that the current shutdown logjam in the Senate would likely make Republicans more eager—not less—to pursue filibuster-proof legislation.

“This is an indicator of [Democrats’] unwillingness to work across the aisle and the inability of this Democrat conference or caucus to realize what time it is and what the American people want,” Perry told The Daily Signal. 

“We’re going to keep on giving them the opportunity, but if they’re going to keep showing us that they’re unwilling or unable to take the opportunity and take the win, we’re going to have to find some other way to move to advance the priorities of the American people.”

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