As Congress prepares to reconvene in Washington after its August recess, all eyes are on House Speaker Mike Johnson, the man at the center of a political whirlwind that has reshaped the nation’s legislative landscape. In just eight months, Johnson has steered a razor-thin Republican majority to deliver on long-standing conservative goals, from sweeping changes to Medicaid and border security to the passage of one of the largest tax and spending bills in American history. But with a looming budget deadline, fallout from a Minneapolis school shooting, and renewed pressure for transparency in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation, the challenges ahead are as formidable as any Johnson has faced.
Johnson’s recent appearance on "Good Morning America" offered a window into the balancing act required of a modern House Speaker. Addressing the turmoil at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) following the abrupt termination of director Susan Monarez, Johnson defended Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “There’s been a shakeup that’s been needed there, and I think we’ve got to trust the secretary to do his job,” Johnson told ABC, adding, “They’ve had some great results there. We’re getting America healthy again—that’s well received across the country, and long overdue, in my view, so we’re going to let the Cabinet do their job, and I’m going to stay in my lane and do mine.”
Johnson’s support for Kennedy Jr. comes amid a mass exodus at the CDC and growing questions about vaccine availability and public trust in the agency. While he declined to offer specifics on how the shakeup might affect Americans’ access to vaccines, Johnson emphasized the CDC’s crucial role: “The CDC plays an important role in the government and in our society, and we want it to be strong, and we want it to be restored to its original intent.” He agreed with Kennedy Jr.’s assertion that “the existing leadership was not—not doing that.”
But the health agency controversy is just one of many fires Johnson is trying to manage. The House returns to a packed agenda, with a federal budget deadline of September 30, 2025, looming large. The stakes couldn’t be higher: the Trump administration is proposing $1.69 trillion in discretionary spending for the next fiscal year, down from $1.83 trillion, with significant cuts to FEMA and the Department of Health and Human Services, and a dramatic 65% increase in funding for mass immigrant removals. If lawmakers fail to pass a budget, the government could grind to a halt—a scenario no party wants to own heading into the 2026 midterms.
Johnson’s path to the speakership was itself a testament to his ability to unite disparate factions. Not the first, second, or even third choice among House Republicans during the bruising intra-party battles of October 2023, Johnson ultimately emerged as a consensus builder. According to The Hill, Rep. Carlos Gimenez described him as someone who “makes the impossible happen,” adding, “For him, it’s kind of what happens every single day.”
That consensus-building skill was put to the test with the passage of the nearly 1,000-page One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The legislation, a centerpiece of President Donald Trump’s domestic agenda, included continued border wall construction, increased deportations, expanded energy production, tax breaks, and regulatory rollbacks. At nearly $4 trillion in spending and $3.7 trillion added to the national debt over ten years, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the bill was as ambitious as it was controversial.
Health care changes in the bill are predicted by analysts to result in nearly 12 million low-income Americans losing their insurance. Johnson, for his part, maintains that the reforms will make Medicaid more efficient and sustainable: “At its core, the One Big Beautiful Bill is a distinctly pro-family piece of legislation. It represents a monumental victory for hardworking families across America,” he said in a statement cited by The Advocate. “Republicans are advancing in this Congress an agenda that values them—just as our principles and policies always have.”
The bill’s passage required deft maneuvering. Johnson relied on the budget reconciliation process to bypass the Senate’s 60-vote threshold, squeezing the legislation through with Vice President JD Vance casting the tie-breaking vote. President Trump signed the bill into law at a July 4, 2025, ceremony, marking a historic moment for the administration and the GOP.
Yet for all the legislative victories, Johnson’s tenure has not been without turbulence. He’s survived multiple leadership challenges, thanks in part to the support of fellow Louisianan Steve Scalise and direct intervention from Trump himself. As Rep. Julia Letlow put it to The Advocate, “Well, you know what I’m learning over and over again is don’t underestimate Speaker Mike Johnson. He manages to thread that needle beautifully.”
Still, the Speaker faces mounting pressure on other fronts. The debate over the public release of Jeffrey Epstein investigation files has roiled both parties. Johnson, who previously called a bill to force the Justice Department’s hand “reckless,” now faces a bipartisan discharge petition led by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie. “If it’s necessary, we will,” Johnson said of a potential floor vote, though he suggested the recent release of thousands of documents to the House Oversight Committee may render further action moot. Critics, including Khanna, argue that much of the released material was already public and that Congress must still act to ensure true transparency.
Meanwhile, the fallout from the tragic mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, which left two children dead and 18 injured, has reignited the debate over gun violence. Johnson, while expressing openness to bipartisan discussions, stopped short of endorsing new gun control measures. “Listen, it’s important that politicians on either side of the aisle do not politicize a moment like this,” he said on ABC. “There are many commonsense measures that can and should be taken to protect children at schools and churches that do not involve taking away the constitutional rights of law-abiding American citizens.” He added, “At the end of the day, the problems in these situations is not the guns, it’s the human heart, and we can put more resources towards treatment of mental health.”
Even as Johnson juggles these crises, the legislative grind continues. The House must also pass the National Defense Authorization Act, which funds the military and intelligence agencies and has never failed to pass in 64 years. There’s a $32 billion gap between the House and Senate versions of the bill, and time is running short. Johnson has hinted at another massive reconciliation package or revisions to the Big Beautiful Bill, with debates on health care and college athlete compensation waiting in the wings. Political landmines abound, from Federal Reserve appointments to contentious redistricting efforts aimed at shoring up the GOP’s House majority.
Despite the obstacles, Johnson remains resolute. As he told "Good Morning America," “It is aptly named. It is big and it is beautiful, and every single American is going to benefit from it.” Whether the public agrees remains to be seen—but for now, Johnson’s ability to keep the legislative machine running may be the GOP’s best hope for advancing its agenda in a deeply divided Washington.
