Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson assured a CNN reporter Saturday that he's a man of the Constitution and would accept a Kamala Harris victory in the presidential election— but then tacked on a gaping "not necessarily" condition as he has done in the past.
"Now everyone's going to freak out," he acknowledged responding to a question from reporter Manu Raju about what he will do if Harris wins.
Johnson said he would accept a Harris victory "only if it's a free and fair election" — apparently accepting as credible Donald Trump's relentless lies about fraudulent voting despite a lack of evidence, and across-the-board past dismissals by courts and countless investigations.
"Yes, yes," he answered in frustration when asked if he would accept a Harris victory.
"I've taken an oath to uphold the Constitution. We're going to do our job. It shouldn't even be a question or a controversy," he said.
But wait. "Look I'm going to qualify this and everyone's going to freak out again," he added, noting he'll accept America's vote only "if it's a free and fair election."
Raju pointed out that Trump is already spewing baseless claims of faudulent voting in the event he loses. Johnson insisted that Trump is just pressing for "accountability," not trying to steal the election as he attempted to do in an unprecedented action January 6, 2021.
Johnson's position raises alarms given his influence as speaker. Even more worrisome is Trump's recent revelation that he and Johnson have a "secret" that will be revealed after the election.
Johnson shrugged off Trump's comment, insisting their secret is simply a plan to get out the vote, which immediately raised the question of why such activity would be secret.
"Mike Johnson is the Speaker of the House, he could do a lot of things to mess with the certification of the Electoral College." — Rep. Dan Goldman on Trump saying he and Johnson have a 'little secret'. pic.twitter.com/jIcTDTJdM9
— Blue Georgia (@BlueATLGeorgia) November 1, 2024
