House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) was torn apart on social media on Friday after comments he made about the upcoming midterm elections and what would happen to President Donald Trump’s allies if Democrats took control of Congress.
Johnson, in what he likely meant as a warning to the GOP, predicted numerous Trump and Republican-adjacent figures would be investigated if Democrats prevail in November.
“They will turn every committee of Congress into an investigative body, and they’ll go after the president’s family, the cabinet, his donors and friends, half of you in this room will be targeted. I run the protection program. I’ll take care of you. We’re going to win the midterms,” he continued.
Some critics jumped on Johnson’s use of the phrase “protection program,” likening it to what a “mob boss from Brooklyn” would say, while others suggested Johnson’s comments were tantamount to an admission of criminal activity.
Some commenters pointed out that Congress’s job is not to “protect the President and his family.”
“It’s to provide checks and balances on the Executive Branch. You’re damn right we will investigate crimes and corruption,” Missouri congressional candidate Fred Wellman wrote on X.