House Republicans still cannot quit the drama. In the end, Donald Trump got his man as Mike Johnson was re-elected speaker of the House on Friday, but the chaos on the House floor, exposing recurring Republican rifts in spectacular fashion, suggests that tougher battles lie ahead. The abortive rebellion against Johnson was a deliberate reminder that even Trump, who has refashioned the party in his own image over the past decade, cannot wield total command.
Although two of three rebels came around after some frantic arm-twisting outside the chamber, Trump’s second term in the White House is likely to be marked by the same infighting, drama and brinkmanship that defined his first. The president-elect spent political capital to sway the vote for Johnson in the.