Speaker Mike Johnson said Republicans were left out of the border bill negotiations, but Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) said Johnson was invited but declined.
Did Mike Johnson Lie About the Border Bill?
Johnson tried to paint the House as being in the dark about the border bill negotiations on Meet The Press: “Well, you’re addressing some of the rumors about what’s in this text. It was negotiated behind closed doors by a small group of people, and even most members of the Senate don’t know what’s in it.”
However, CNN’s Manu Raju reported: “Another note here, Johnson complained, even today, that the House has essentially been left out of these negotiations. Lankford told me that the senators actually offered Mike Johnson a chance to sit down for negotiations. Johnson said the House has already acted, referring to the bill itself, H.R. 2. And Johnson was briefed loosely, according to Lankford, over the course of several months.
Video:
Senator James Lankford says senators offered to let President Mike Johnson join the negotiations: “Lankford told me that the senators actually offered Mike Johnson the chance to sit down for the negotiations. Johnson said: “The House has already spoken.” pic.twitter.com/Xad2CW41Yg
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) February 5, 2024
House Republicans could have participated in this process and helped shape a landmark bipartisan bill that could have become long-overdue immigration reform in the United States. Instead, President Johnson chose to play politics and lie to the American people about it.
If the border bill fails, and it likely will, it will be because Donald Trump and the House Republicans killed it. If Johnson believed the border law was terrible, he shouldn’t lie to the American people about it.
Mike Johnson claims to be Christian, but he’s just another MAGA liar who worships Donald Trump.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a member of the White House press pool and a congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a bachelor’s degree in political science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and professional memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and the American Political Science Association