Johnson lays out key commitments amid Speakership battle

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Friday vowed to “reduce the size and scope of the federal government” among several other commitments as he fights to keep his gavel this week.

“If we don’t follow through on our campaign promise for fiscal responsibility, we don’t deserve to hold power,” Johnson said in a post on X. “The national debt is a grave threat to America’s economic and national security — and no issue exemplifies the Congress’ failures more.”

Along with tackling the size of the government, he vowed to lead House Republicans in holding “the bureaucracy accountable” and moving “the United States to a more sustainable fiscal trajectory.”

His post comes as uncertainty surround’s Johnson’s bid to keep his Speakership over the next two years amid opposition from some hardline conservatives critical of his leadership thus far.

Johnson first became Speaker in October 2023 following the historic ouster of then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as intraparty tensions reached a boiling point, in large part over fiscal issues and funding legislation.

Johnson has also received growing criticism from his right flank in the aftermath of a government funding deal struck with Democrats last month to prevent a shutdown.

As part of the commitments Johnson outlined on Friday, the Speaker voted to set up a “working group comprised of independent experts — not corrupted by lobbyists and special interests.” Johnson said the group would work with President-elect Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) and “committees on implementing recommended government and spending reforms to protect the American taxpayer.”

He also vowed to task the group “with reviewing existing audits of federal agencies and entities created by Congress — and issuing a report to my office for public release,” and call for House committees to “undertake aggressive authorizations and appropriations reviews, including providing additional resources where needed, to expose irresponsible or illegal practices and hold agencies/individuals accountable that have weaponized government against the American people.”

“If we want to restore fiscal responsibility, we must start by being transparent about the dollars that are spent, address the issues we find, and then hold those accountable who have misspent funds. Republicans have a mandate to implement the America First Agenda, and as Speaker, this will be my priority,” he said.

In a post on X shortly after, Rep. Victoria Spartz (Ind.), one of Johnson’s previous GOP holdouts, signaled support for the Speaker, saying she appreciated his “public commitment to the American people to deliver on President Trump’s agenda and drain the swamp.”

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