Two Republican senators are advocating for an unorthodox choice to replace Speaker of the House Mike Johnson following President-elect Donald Trump’s decision to tank the speaker’s massive spending deal negotiated with House Democrats.
Republican Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Mike Lee of Utah are calling for Elon Musk, who led the charge against Johnson’s spending bill, to take over as House speaker during the upcoming Congress. Lee has also floated Vivek Ramaswamy, co-head of President-elect Donald Trump’s cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) with Musk, for the speakership role.
“The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress. . . Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk. . .think about it. . . nothing’s impossible,” Paul wrote on X on Thursday morning. (not to mention the joy at seeing the collective establishment, aka ‘uniparty,’ lose their ever-lovin’ minds).”
“House Republicans should hire either @elonmusk or @VivekGRamaswamy as their next speaker,” Lee wrote on X on Thursday.
Lee and Paul have enthusiastically supported the DOGE’s mission and Musk’s pledge to help cut federal spending, reduce regulations and shrink the size of government. Both senators sharply criticized Johnson’s spending deal before Trump ultimately killed the bill during a series of Truth Social posts Wednesday night.
Despite Republican House lawmakers’ considerable discontent with Johnson over the failed spending bill that included an array of Democratic priorities, no GOP House member has yet to back Paul and Lee’s proposal.
Republican Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, a fierce critic of the speaker, became the first House GOP lawmaker to oppose Johnson’s bid for another term in the leadership role on Wednesday.
“I’ll vote for somebody else,” Massie told Politico. “I’ve got a few in mind. I’m not going to say yet.”
No Republican lawmakers have announced plans to challenge Johnson as speaker.
It is unclear whether Musk, co-head of the president-elect’s cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency and CEO of four companies, would be interested in the role. Though the speakership has always gone to a sitting House lawmaker, no provision in the Constitution prohibits an unelected official from taking on the role.
House lawmakers are set to vote on Johnson’s bid for another term as speaker on Jan. 3.
The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s inquiry about whether Trump plans to support Johnson’s bid to stay in the speakership role for another two years.
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