Massie continues criticism of Johnson, says he'll cost GOP its 2026 majority if he keeps speakership

Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie on Tuesday continued to warn his fellow Republicans that they will lose their House majority in 2026 if House Speaker Mike Johnson retains his speakership on Friday.

The comment comes after Massie, a staunch Johnson critic, on Monday compared the speaker to a "potato," seeming to suggest in a social media post that he and President Joe Biden are potatoes because they have not accomplish anything, which their respective parties did not realize until it was too late.

Some of the House Republican Conference's more conservative members are at odds with Johnson for having first tried to pass a funding measure earlier this month to avoid a government shutdown that included lots of spending – including pay raises for members of Congress. He eventually passed a slimmed down, stop-gap measure but it did not including abolishing the federal debt ceiling, as President-elect Donald Trump had requested.  

The criticism comes amid former House Speaker Newt Gingrich arguing Republicans who opposed Johnson are siding with Democrats and his challenge for them to explain their end game since they do not have a speaker candidate who could be elected instead. 

"Challenge accepted," Massie replied in a post on X. "What do we hope to gain? A competent Speaker who has the will and the ability to capitalize on this once in a decade opportunity. Johnson is not up for this task. 

"Also, we want a Speaker who inspires the public and who can make our case in the media, so we can keep the majority for the second half of Trump’s term," he continued. "Johnson nearly led us to the minority in what was a banner year for Trump. He is certain to lose us the majority in 2026."

Massie also rejected the argument that Johnson is the only "electable" candidate, saying that his last win was because he was the least objectionable option, which is no longer the case. He also denied that anti-Johnson Republicans are Democratic allies, claiming that Johnson actually allied with Democrats when he couldn't get enough Republican votes.

"Even if Mike’s entire goal is to do everything Trump wants without debate or question (which I would argue is not healthy for the institution of Congress), he’s not going to be good at it," Massie said. "He already demonstrated this month that he won’t tell the President what is achievable and what is not achievable in the House, and he lacks the situational awareness himself to know what can pass and what cannot."

The comments come after President-elect Donald Trump endorsed Johnson for speaker on Monday, along with Elon Musk. 

Several Republicans have predicted that Trump's endorsement will ensure that Johnson remains speaker in the 119th Congress.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.