GOP rep on backing Johnson as Speaker: 'I'm going to keep my options open’

Rep. Scott Perry (Pa.), a former chair of the House Freedom Caucus, is the latest Republican to decline to commit to supporting Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) as the House prepares to formally elect a Speaker on Jan. 3, adding uncertainty to the GOP leader’s prospects of retaining his gavel.

“Right now, I think that Mike has done an admirable job under tough conditions, but I'm going to keep my options open. I want to have a conversation with Mike,” Perry said Friday on “Mornings with Maria” on Fox Business.

While Johnson was unanimously renominated by House Republicans to be Speaker again in November, Republican frustration with how he handled an end-of-year short-term funding deal last week has put the GOP leader on thin ice ahead of the Jan. 3 vote.

“What members are seeking is what they think is good for the country, and they don't see, in some cases, where Speaker Johnson has gotten us to the place where we can claim that we've achieved that,” Perry said.

Perry, who was appointed by Johnson to a coveted spot on the House Intelligence Committee earlier this year, was less critical of Johnson than some of his hard-line conservative GOP colleagues.

One Republican, Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.), is already publicly pledging to vote against the Speaker on Jan. 3, citing frustration with not only the continuing resolution but other matters like Ukraine funding over the last year.

Johnson cannot afford more than one Republican defection on the House floor in the Jan. 3 Speakership election, assuming all members are present and voting. Republicans are set to have 219 Republicans taking the oath of office on Jan. 3, and all 215 Democrats are expected to vote for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.).

Several other Republicans are declining to say whether they will support Johnson.

Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), chair of the Freedom Caucus, said in a statement on social platform X that he was “undecided on what leadership should look like in the 119th Congress,” citing concerns about unpaid new spending in the spending bill not offset by cuts.

The frustration is not limited to hard-line fiscal hawks. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) also said Friday on Fox Business that she has “questions and concerns” about Johnson.

“I think last week just raised a lot of concerns about how we’re going to do things,” Malliotakis said. “Are we going to work within our conference to get the solution, or are we automatically going to run to the Democrats to get votes?”

“We should not see our Speaker shaking hands on a deal without first coming to our conference and getting buy-in,” she added.

Perry noted that the biggest difference-maker for Johnson could be President-elect Trump, who had shown support for the Speaker in November but then clashed with him over the funding deal and demands to raise the debt ceiling last week.

“I'll tell you, the one that might be able to make the difference is, quite honestly, President Trump. Whoever the president backs, is likely to be the Speaker regardless,” Perry said.