Like many members of Congress, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) had a response to the news that former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was retiring.
Unlike others, his reaction seemed geared toward just one person and ― spoiler alert! ― it wasn’t Pelosi.
Although the statement had the sorts of buzzwords sure to please GOP true believers, it was also seasoned with a touch of phony sympathy and passive aggression.
“The old guard has been repudiated, and the radicals are taking over the Democratic Party. We have evidence now every day,” Johnson said. “Yesterday, [Democrat] Jared Golden announced he would not be running for reelection in the state of Maine. He’s a moderate. And he has no place in his party anymore.”
“And then, this morning, you saw the headline: Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi has now announced her retirement this morning. That is a very important sign that I hope that you all will delve into.”
“Even the famous San Francisco liberal is not far left enough for the neo-Marxists. We commend her for her service,” he added.
Johnson’s very, very faint praise around Pelosi’s departure was in keeping with the reaction his party’s fearless leader, Donald Trump, gave to Fox News: “The retirement of Nancy Pelosi is a great thing for America. She was evil, corrupt, and only focused on bad things for our country.”
But his so-called sympathy over “the radicals ... taking over the Democratic Party” comes just days after Democratic candidates won huge victories by, as Virginia Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger put it, choosing “pragmatism over partisanship.”