Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) spoke with CNN’s Manu Raju after a closed-door meeting with Republicans led Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) to withdraw his name from consideration for Speaker, sending the House GOP searching for its third nominee in 17 days.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), a hard-liner who was one of the eight Republicans who voted to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), interjected Johnson’s interview as she was passing by in the building.
Johnson responded on air, calling out Mace and several other Republicans and calling it frustrating.
“Let’s be clear, Nancy Mace, it’s been a long time since she’s done anything productive to move forward this broader team,” Johnson said Friday. “America’s got real problems and this is a time where we need people who are interested in problem-solving, not self-aggrandizement.”
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In reference to Mace and the other members who have effectively put a pause on the House for weeks, Johnson said he thinks there are always going to be people who are more interested in themselves than working as a team.
“I think Americans are sick of it and I know most members of the House are sick of it,” Johnson said. “It is time for big boys and big girls to stop with the nonsense and get back to work for the United States.”
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After Friday’s meeting, Johnson said members are going to “decompress from what was a difficult environment” and that some members need to do “some soul searching.”
“I think we’re going to need to find some people who have never thought of themselves in this way, somebody who’s not spent five or ten years trying to become the Speaker of the House,” he said.
Johnson said he thinks there will be several more days of chaos but Republicans need a mission-driven nominee who is focused on accomplishing things because “blind ambition” has distorted the replacement process enough.
“We need to find somebody who frankly understands that this may as well be the last opportunity they have to serve in politics,” Johnson said.
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