WASHINGTON, D.C.—Rep. Greg Stanton said today he opposes Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana for Speaker of the House of Representatives, citing his political extremism and disregard for the will of the voters in Arizona and nationwide.
“After more than three weeks of paralysis and dysfunction, House Republicans have rejected bipartisanship and are instead attempting to install an extremist election denier as second in line to the presidency,” said Stanton.
A New York Times report cited Johnson as the “most important architect of the [2020] Electoral College objection,” describing his unorthodox legal theory of “constitutional infirmity”—the idea that if state officials set election rules without the explicit approval of state legislatures, its grounds for Congress to reject election results from those states. The Times cited several legal experts as saying, “Congress does not have authority to rule on the constitutionality of a state’s election procedures.”
As Chairman of the Republican Study Committee, Johnson also led more than 125 House Republicans in filing an amicus brief with the Supreme Court seeking to overturn 2020 election results, despite a lawyer for House Republican leadership telling him his arguments were unconstitutional. On January 6th, 2021, Johnson voted to object to the election in Arizona.
“After more than three weeks of paralysis and dysfunction, House Republicans have rejected bipartisanship and are instead attempting to install an extremist election denier as second in line to the presidency,” said Stanton.
A New York Times report cited Johnson as the “most important architect of the [2020] Electoral College objection,” describing his unorthodox legal theory of “constitutional infirmity”—the idea that if state officials set election rules without the explicit approval of state legislatures, its grounds for Congress to reject election results from those states. The Times cited several legal experts as saying, “Congress does not have authority to rule on the constitutionality of a state’s election procedures.”
As Chairman of the Republican Study Committee, Johnson also led more than 125 House Republicans in filing an amicus brief with the Supreme Court seeking to overturn 2020 election results, despite a lawyer for House Republican leadership telling him his arguments were unconstitutional. On January 6th, 2021, Johnson voted to object to the election in Arizona.