Over the past week, more than a dozen GOP lawmakers laid out a scattershot list of grievances in conversations with Fox News, and the targets were everywhere: Speaker Mike Johnson, the White House, Senate Republicans, and even their own colleagues.
The frustration is not just about personalities; it is about the direction of the party. After last summer’s one big, beautiful bill act, members now sound like a conference searching for its next mission.
One House Republican summed up the problem with the GOP, stating, “Right now, we don’t have a focused agenda that we’re moving towards like we did with the one big, beautiful bill. That brought all of our energy together in a focused manner.”
Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga. didn’t blame Johnson specifically but argued Republicans “did nothing” on healthcare when they took power earlier this year, and now they are stuck “scrambling” as health insurance premium hikes loom early next year. House Republicans unveiled a bill aimed at lowering healthcare costs on Friday evening, but even supporters seem unsure whether it can clear the internal hurdles to pass.
For many in the GOP, the frustration keeps circling back to Johnson, and not in vague terms.
Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., ticked through a list that sounded less like a policy critique and more like an indictment of leadership misfires. “I think there’s a lot of concerns about the way things have been handled the last several months, starting with leadership, let this redistricting war break out, which is gonna upend the districts of dozens of our members. And then the fact we just weren’t here for two months,” Kiley said. “And then the way that the House is really not in the driver’s seat on a lot of the key issues around here, I think all of that is pretty frustrating to a swath of the conference.”
Others say their issues with Johnson are more personal as Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., told Fox News she believes the speaker is blocking her push for a National Women’s Museum, despite what she described as support from President Donald Trump. “It’s been stalled by the speaker, in committee, despite having 165 sponsors from both parties,” Malliotakis said.
Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., leveled his own complaint after the latest wrangling over the National Defense Authorization Act. “We’re getting shoved, and we just have to eat it, or, you know, vote against increasing pay to our military service members. It’s a very unfortunate situation to be in, that the speaker keeps putting us in,” Steube said.
Even lawmakers who praise the party’s big legislative win are describing a post-victory hangover that is quickly turning toxic. “I think getting Trump’s signature piece of legislation through is excellent, and everybody should be commended for that, because that was just a huge accomplishment, and it’ll do great things for the country next year. Now that we’ve gotten over that, now you’re kind of, like, what can we do next?” Steube said.
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., went public in a New York Times op-ed and slammed the GOP leadership: “Here’s a hard truth Republicans don’t want to hear: Nancy Pelosi was a more effective House speaker than any Republican this century.” She added, “Speaker Mike Johnson is better than his predecessor. But the frustrations of being a rank-and-file House member are compounded as certain individuals or groups remain marginalized within the party, getting little say.”
Mace later told Fox News she had spoken with Johnson the same week the op-ed ran, and while she declined to detail the conversation, she said she did not feel heard.
Perhaps the most telling line came from a second House Republican who spoke anonymously, asked whether the irritation with Johnson is bigger than a few loud voices. “Yeah, I would say so. Especially rank-and-file people.”
As the year comes to a close, it appears the GOP is imploding with concerning midterm polling only adding to the frustration.
