House Speaker Mike Johnson defied the naysayers on Thursday, telling Daily Wire host Michael Knowles that Republicans will expand their majority in the 2026 midterm elections.
“I’m very bullish about the midterms,” Johnson said during the interview. “I’m absolutely convinced we are going to win the midterms and grow the majority. It will defy historic trend.”
Johnson acknowledged that such a result would break a longstanding pattern. “It’s only twice in the last 90 years that a sitting president has picked up seats in that first two-year cycle,” he said.
Still, Johnson argued the political landscape favors Republicans, pointing to fundraising advantages and Democratic struggles to define a clear agenda.
“We have a fundraising advantage right now because the stakes are so high — Republicans over Democrats for the first time in 10 years,” Johnson said. “Democrats are at historic lows in approval ratings. They have no leadership, no message, no vision for where they’re going.”
“Their whole platform is they hate Donald Trump,” he added. “Well, good luck with that. That’s not exactly something to sell to constituents.”
Of all the issues Republicans are leading on, Johnson stressed election integrity, noting that the House has already passed the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship and identification to vote in federal elections. Johnson told Knowles the problem is the Senate, where the legislation has been held up.
“We passed the SAVE Act twice, the previous Congress and this Congress,&#8221; Johnson said. &#8220;Now we pass the Save America Act because now it’s voter ID and proof of citizenship together.&#8221; He added that Trump has recently pushed for additional provisions to strengthen the bill, calling the package the “greatest hits” of election integrity measures.
Johnson said the bill now faces a complicated path in the Senate, where Majority Leader John Thune must decide whether to attempt moving the legislation despite procedural hurdles. According to Johnson, Senate rules could allow Democrats to stall the process with a flood of amendments.
“They’re concerned that if they open the talking filibuster … Democrats could flood the field with thousands of amendments,” Johnson said. “There’s no germaneness limitation. They can add any crazy Democrat policy they want.”
He warned that under Senate rules, each amendment must be read into the record in full, which could tie up the chamber. “They could file 1,400-page amendments and tie the Senate floor up for months,” Johnson said. “That’s what they’re concerned about.” 
Johnson said he has discussed the issue directly with Trump and that the president believes Republicans should move forward despite the risks. “Desperate times call for desperate measures,” Johnson said. “I talked to the president about the risks versus the benefits, and he said, ‘Let’s risk it. Go for it.’”
Johnson argued that voter ID and citizenship verification requirements enjoy broad public support and are necessary to restore trust in elections.
“You can’t have a constitutional republic if people don’t have faith in the election system,” Johnson said. “These are basic requirements.”
Johnson also addressed the challenges of managing the razor-thin Republican majority in the House, which has forced leadership to carefully balance competing factions inside the conference.
“I mean, we have the smallest margin in U.S. history,” Johnson said. “I have a one-vote margin. Which means I have to get unanimity because the aforementioned colleague of mine votes no almost every day.”
The comment was in reference to Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), who is in the midst of a feud with President Trump and frequently breaks with party leadership on spending and foreign policy issues.
Johnson pushed back on the notion that internal disagreements reflect a broader ideological divide over the party’s direction on foreign policy, insisting Republicans are not pursuing an interventionist approach.
“We are not in the nation-building business,&#8221; Johnson said. &#8220;We are not interventionists. We are not out trying to be the world’s policemen.&#8221;
He added that fiscal realities also limit America’s ability to pursue large-scale overseas commitments. “In reality, because of our financial situation, we don’t have the ability to do those things even if someone wanted to,” Johnson said.

Speaker Johnson And Leader Jeffries

Mike Johnson Is ‘Absolutely Convinced We Are Going To Win The Midterms’

2026 Midterms

Michael Knowles

Mike Johnson

Republicans

Thomas Massie

A hot debate has now broken out in the Republican Party over the so-called SAVE Act.
Republicans support the SAVE Act, which would force voter ID nationally. Democrats in the Senate have been holding it up.
President Trump correctly <a href="https://www.c-span.org/program/white-house-event/president-trump-addresses-house-republicans-at-annual-retreat/674954">points out </a>that the SAVE Act is quite popular with Americans.
“Even the Democrats — you saw the numbers today?— Democrats voted 86% that this stuff should be passed,” he noted. “With the Republicans, you&#8217;re at 98%. But Democrats are at 86%, except for the people that run the Democrat Party, because they want to try and win elections illegally. The only reason you vote against voter I.D. is because you want to cheat. There&#8217;s no other reason. They come up with reasons; they say it&#8217;s racist. That&#8217;s their number one: racist. Then they have to explain it, and they&#8217;re just sitting there mumbling. They can&#8217;t explain it.”
President Trump has also been having fun <a href="https://www.c-span.org/program/white-house-event/president-trump-addresses-house-republicans-at-annual-retreat/674954">mocking</a> Chuck Schumer: “It&#8217;s the easiest thing we have. Now the problem is you call it the SAVE Act, and nobody knew what the hell the SAVE Act was. &#8230; It&#8217;s called ‘The Save America Act’. And I saw Schumer yesterday: ‘We will stop Save America.’ He’s getting killed. They can&#8217;t do it.”
President Trump says that Republicans should <a href="https://www.c-span.org/program/white-house-event/president-trump-addresses-house-republicans-at-annual-retreat/674954">not approve anything</a> until the SAVE Act passes:
“But they have to get it done. Because if we don&#8217;t get this done, if it takes six months, I&#8217;m for not approving anything. I don&#8217;t think we should approve anything until this is approved. And they can&#8217;t win politically. Look, you have them in a corner, and they&#8217;re listening to every word I&#8217;m saying. It doesn&#8217;t matter because they can&#8217;t win it politically. Because when they say, ‘We don&#8217;t want voter identification. We don&#8217;t want proof of citizenship,” all these things are just losers for them.”
Chuck Schumer, for his part, keeps arguing that if we clean the voter rolls of people who have moved or are dead and require people to use voter ID, somehow this is going to result in mass voter disenfranchisement, a proposition that pretty much no one actually agrees with. 
“It allows ICE to kick tens of millions of people off the rolls, off the rolls, and they don&#8217;t tell them until Election Day,” he <a href="https://www.c-span.org/program/news-conference/senate-democratic-agenda/675075">huffed</a>. “And you show them, you say. ‘You&#8217;re not registered anymore, you&#8217;re not registered here, you&#8217;re not on the rolls.’ And they say, ‘I didn&#8217;t know that.’ This is a bill that destroys the country. And it is not about showing ID when you show up to vote. It&#8217;s about the voter registration rolls, destroying them, purging them, not letting people know, and taking the rights in an algorithm put together by ICE, put together by DOGE and Musk. It&#8217;s an outrage.” 
If you just say DOGE or Musk three times in a row, Beetlejuice appears, according to Chuck Schumer.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-2385-iranian-propaganda-syndrome?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-974957" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-300x50.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-768x128.webp 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1536x256.webp 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-2048x341.webp 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
This is silly. If you can&#8217;t abide by the law with regard to voting, you shouldn&#8217;t vote. And if you moved and you didn&#8217;t tell them you moved, then you probably should tell them you moved. Democrats trying to turn basic adult functions into some sort of Mensa test are lying. It’s not that hard to register to vote. It&#8217;s not hard to determine where and how to vote. People have been figuring it out for decades.
But now, because Democrats are trying to filibuster the SAVE Act in the Senate, to prevent it from passing by forcing Republicans to find 60 votes in the Senate, President Trump is talking about killing the filibuster.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, by contrast, says, no, we&#8217;re not doing that.
“We don&#8217;t have the votes either to proceed, get on a talking filibuster, nor to sustain one if we got on it,” he <a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-EQvN-hLoz0">stated</a>. “But that is just a function of math. &#8230; I understand the president&#8217;s got a passion to see this issue addressed, as we all do. We’ll continue to make that argument because I think it&#8217;s important that everybody understands this is really about the votes. It&#8217;s about the math.”
A lot of people are asking, why doesn&#8217;t Thune kill the filibuster? The answer is simple. He&#8217;s concerned if Republicans kill the filibuster, the next time the Democrats have a majority in the House and the Senate and run the presidency, they simply run roughshod over Republicans and essentially end any chance of possible parity in future elections, all with just 51 votes. They add new states, they add new senators, and they change the voting rules and all the rest.
There have been two arguments that have been put out there to counter John Thune’s argument. First, there&#8217;s the argument that Republicans should end what&#8217;s known as the “talking filibuster.” When most people think about the filibuster, they think of Jimmy Stewart talking for hours until he faints in the film “Mr. Smith goes to Washington.”
It takes 60 votes to ensure “cloture,” which means to stop a talking filibuster. Under Senate Rule 19, each senator can speak twice per day. Members of the same party can hold the floor continuously. Theoretically, Johnson could force Democrats to do that, get up there and just talk and talk and talk and talk.
In the past, however, opposing parties have allowed the so-called “silent filibuster,” a filibuster that all agree would be possible in the absence of talking for days at a time. People basically say, “You don&#8217;t have 60 votes. Instead of making us talk for weeks on end, we are not going to do that. You don’t have 60 votes to kill it anyway.”
So why doesn&#8217;t John Thune kill the silent filibuster? There are a few practical reasons. First, if 47 Democrats each gave six-hour speeches and did that continuously in a cycle, they could stop the business of the Senate for months. The only way to keep the Senate in session, in order to keep the pressure on Democrats to keep talking, would be for Republicans to maintain a quorum, meaning 51 senators nearby. If they didn&#8217;t have a quorum, if somebody goes home and suddenly there are 49 senators, Democrats can move to adjourn the session, the clock restarts, and all the senators can speak twice again. Which means that killing the silent filibuster basically ensures pain, but not gain.
That&#8217;s not going to stop critics from attacking Senator Thune and other Republicans as somehow feeble or insufficient in their defense of conservative policy. That&#8217;s always the rap from people in my industry toward politicians: “The reason that Republicans don&#8217;t do enough is a lack of will. If only they had more Nietzschean willpower! Or maybe they&#8217;re corrupt?” 
 
But that&#8217;s not what&#8217;s happening. The simple case here is that in the Senate, which happens to be a more collegial body than the House, Republicans must always have one eye on the question of what happens when the political shoe is on the other foot.
Just as Democrats killed the judicial filibuster only to watch Republicans stack the Supreme Court, Republicans have to be careful not to kill the filibuster on other issues, just to watch Democrats ram through fundamental changes to the nature of American life and law.
Democrats are obstructing, there&#8217;s no question about it.
They aren’t interested in honest voting.

SchumerSAVE

The SAVE Act Standoff

Chuck Schumer

Congress

Donald Trump

House of Representatives

Iran

John Thune

Opinion

SAVE America Act

U.S. Senate

Trump-backed Republican Clay Fuller and Democrat Shawn Harris will presumably face off in an April 7 runoff special election in former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Georgia district, based on the results available as of Tuesday evening.
Greene resigned from her position representing the 14th Congressional District on Jan. 5 after a public falling out with President Donald Trump over the Epstein files, despite once being close allies.
The special election comes as Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) Republican majority remains extremely slim, as Rep. Kevin Kiley (I-CA) announced that he would still caucus with Republicans, but would leave the party. This leaves only 217 registered Republicans in the House.
Fuller is the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit’s District Attorney and a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air National Guard, according to his campaign website.
&#8220;We have to come together and beat the Democrat, Shawn Harris, in this race, and go and win this thing on April 7th,&#8221; Fuller said in a video on Wednesday morning.
His website also lists an “America First economy” and supporting for mass deportations as someone his top issues.
“And I have Fuller on my side. I know that I got my Fuller. You better win that election,” Trump said during an economy-focused visit to Rome, Georgia, which is in the district, in February.
He was also backed by Johnson, who touted his runoff advancement on Tuesday night.
“Congratulations to Trump-endorsed and our endorsed candidate, [Clay Fuller], for advancing to the [GA-14] April 7 runoff!” Johnson posted.
There are two other vacancies in the House, one in a Republican-leaning seat and another in a Democratic-leaning seat, with those special elections in the coming months.
Harris, a farmer and retired brigadier general, wrote in an X post on Tuesday night that “Marjorie Taylor Greene isn’t on the ballot, but the fallout from her feud still is.”
“This race isn’t about loyalty to Trump. It’s about loyalty to the voters of Northwest Georgia,” he wrote. “I’m running to serve the people here at home — not chase anyone in Washington.”
The Democrat has gotten the attention of some high profile Democrats, like former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
&#8220;There&#8217;s no such thing as a permanently red state or district, and I believe Shawn Harris has the background and values to bring people together and win,&#8221; Buttigieg said in a February statement. &#8220;Shawn is running because he knows the status quo in Washington isn&#8217;t working for people in the district, and he&#8217;s ready to get to work to lower prescription drug prices, pass a farm bill that works for rural Georgia, and defend Medicare and Medicaid.&#8221;
Former State Sen. Colton Moore and Brian Stover were other key Republicans in the special election, but Fuller ultimately earned the Trump nod in February, with the president writing on Truth Social that Fuller is “strongly supported by the most Highly Respected MAGA Warriors in Georgia, and many Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives.”
In November, Greene shared a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/marjorie-taylor-greene-to-resign-from-congress" target="_blank" rel="noopener">video</a> explaining her decision, saying that “loyalty should be a two-way street.”
“I’ve been blessed to represent the 14th District of Georgia for five years. That district is filled with some of the most wonderful, kind-hearted, God fearing, patriotic, hardworking people you will ever meet. Good, regular, common Americans,” the congresswoman said.
“Because my self worth is not defined by a man, but instead by God, who created everything in existence,” Greene added at the time.
The district is deeply Republican, with Greene winning re-election in 2024 with over 64% of the vote compared with Kamala Harris’ roughly 36%. Trump won the district with 68% of the vote, and he won the battleground state of Georgia with just under 51%.
All eyes will remain on the Peach State through November, as the United States Senate race is considered a “toss-up,” according to the Cook Political Report.
Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) will face off against either Reps. Mike Collins, Buddy Carter, or former football coach Derek Dooley, depending on who wins the Republican primary on May 19. Trump has yet to endorse a candidate in the race.

President Trump Participates In National Day Of Prayer Event At White House

Top Two Candidates Emerge In Runoff For Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Open Congressional Seat

2026 election

Elections

Georgia

Marjorie Taylor Greene

Politics

Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas said Thursday that he will end his re-election campaign just one day after admitting to having an affair with a former staffer who died by suicide last year. 
Gonzales said in a statement that “after deep reflection,” he has decided not to seek re-election in Texas’s 23rd Congressional District. His announcement comes after he was forced into a GOP primary runoff by challenger Brandon Herrera and calls from fellow Republicans to drop out of the race. 
“After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek re-election while serving out the rest of this Congress with the same commitment I’ve always had to my district. Through the rest of my term, I will continue fighting for my constituents, for whom I am eternally grateful,” he <a href="https://x.com/RepTonyGonzales/status/2029772094481842245">said</a>. 
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA), Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN), and GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-MI) all called on Thursday for Gonzales to end his campaign. 
“The Ethics Committee has announced an investigation into Congressman Tony Gonzales’s conduct, and we urge them to act expeditiously,” the Republicans said. “In the meantime, Leadership has asked Congressman Gonzales to withdraw from his race for re-election.”
That call came after Gonzales <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/after-admitting-affair-with-staffer-texas-rep-faces-gop-calls-to-end-re-election-bid?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=2&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=After+Admitting+Affair+With+Staffer%2C+Texas+Rep+Faces+GOP+Calls+To+End+Re-Election+Bid">admitted</a> to an affair with former staffer Regina Santos-Aviles, a 35-year-old married mother who died in September 2025 after dousing herself in an accelerant and setting herself on fire at her home in Uvalde, Texas. 
Gonzales said on Wednesday that his affair with Santos-Aviles ended in the summer of 2024, more than a year before Santos-Aviles committed suicide. Text messages <a href="https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/tony-gonzales-santos-aviles-affair-husband-21360950.php">published</a> last month by the San Antonio Express-News appear to show Gonzales making sexual requests to Santos-Aviles.
On Tuesday, Gonzales was forced into a GOP runoff after Herrera took 43.3% of the primary vote to Gonzales&#8217;s 41.7%. Herrera, a YouTuber and gun manufacturer, thanked Gonzales for dropping out. 
“I appreciate Tony Gonzales for making the appropriate decision,” he said. “I look forward to being the voice of TX23 that our district deserves. From the border, to oil theft, water rights, data centers, and many other issues. It’s an honor to be chosen and together we will make Texas proud.”

House Republicans Hold News Conference On Border Security

Texas Republican’s Affair With Staffer Derails Re-Election Campaign

Texas

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives narrowly passed a measure to overturn President Donald Trump&#8217;s tariffs on Canada on Wednesday.
Six Republicans joined with Democrats to pass the measure 219-211. The Republicans who voted in favor of the measure were Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Don Bacon of Nebraska, Kevin Kiley of California, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Dan Newhouse of Washington, and Jeff Hurd of Colorado.
The resolution, which was introduced by Democratic New York Rep. Gregory Meeks, mostly serves as a symbolic rebuke of Trump&#8217;s far-reaching trade policies, but it also shows how the Republican Party&#8217;s dwindling control of the House is already coming with consequences. The anti-tariff measure advanced by a vote of 217-214 thanks to a united Democratic front and the votes of three Republicans: Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Kevin Kiley of California, and Don Bacon of Nebraska.
Shortly before the vote, Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116054544240272433">wrote</a> on Truth Social, &#8220;Canada has taken advantage of the United States on Trade for many years. They are among the worst in the World to deal with, especially as it relates to our Northern Border. TARIFFS make a WIN for us, EASY. Republicans must keep it that way!&#8221;
On Tuesday, the House cleared the way for the anti-tariff resolution and set up more potential votes on Trump&#8217;s tariffs in the near future. Tuesday&#8217;s procedural vote, which was approved by when Democrats and those three same Republicans, shot down a rule that blocked members from proposing resolutions to reject Trump&#8217;s tariffs. After the successful vote pushing back on Trump&#8217;s Canada tariffs, Democrats are soon expected to bring up more resolutions rejecting the president&#8217;s tariffs on Mexico and Brazil, POLITICO <a href="https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2026/02/11/congress/house-votes-trump-tariffs-resolution-canada-00775520">reported</a>.
Even though the resolution likely won&#8217;t go anywhere past the House, the vote still takes time away from other matters that the lower chamber could be debating and voting on, including major parts of Trump&#8217;s agenda. That fact was acknowledged by Bacon, who voted in favor of the resolution.
&#8220;I don’t like putting the important work of the House on pause, but Congress needs to be able to debate on tariffs,&#8221; <a href="https://x.com/RepDonBacon/status/2021418451911295376?s=20">said</a> Bacon, who has bucked Trump and the Republican Party on multiple occasions.
&#8220;Tariffs have been a &#8216;net negative&#8217; for the economy and are a significant tax that American consumers, manufacturers, and farmers are paying,&#8221; Bacon argued. &#8220;Article I of the Constitution places authority over taxes and tariffs with Congress for a reason, but for too long, we have handed that authority to the executive branch. It’s time for Congress to reclaim that responsibility.&#8221;
The resolution now advances to the Republican-controlled Senate, and even if the upper chamber passed the resolution, it would then have to be signed by the president whose tariffs it seeks to shoot down. While the House resolution will almost assuredly hit a dead end, it represents a growing issue for Republicans as they seek to address the economy and prepare for tightly contested midterm elections. Trump&#8217;s tariffs have also faced scrutiny at the Supreme Court, which could drop a ruling on the issue as early as this month.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who has his hands full trying to keep the small Republican majority in line, said the vote was &#8220;a big mistake.&#8221;
&#8220;I don’t think we need to go down the road of trying to limit the president’s power while he is in the midst of negotiating America-first trade agreements with nations around the world,&#8221; Johnson <a href="https://x.com/atrupar/status/2021575438716297379?s=20">told</a> Fox Business on Wednesday, adding, &#8220;The tariffs [have] been a tool that the president has used very effectively to level the playing field and put America back on top, and I think it&#8217;s wrong for Congress to step in the middle of that.&#8221;
Since the beginning of 2025, Johnson has been tasked with uniting Republicans while holding the narrowest House majority in modern history. What began as a 220-215 Republican majority at the beginning of this term dwindled to a 218-213 majority following the resignation of Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and the death of California Rep. Doug LaMalfa. Democrat Christian Menefee&#8217;s victory in a Texas special election earlier this month further reduced the GOP majority to 218-214, where it currently stands.
The GOP could soon receive another blow, as the Florida Congressman Neal Dunn is <a href="https://x.com/PeterSchorschFL/status/2021293823431716976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2021293823431716976%7Ctwgr%5E327351469860fe8cb0e6a4acffd7e486f19cf0ea%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mediaite.com%2Fpolitics%2Fwith-house-gop-majority-teetering-on-the-brink-florida-congressman-plans-to-retire-early-report%2F">reportedly</a> planning to announce his immediate resignation next week. Dunn already said he would not seek re-election in 2026, but a resignation before the election would drop the Republican Party&#8217;s majority to just three seats.

Trump Goes On With New Tariffs

GOP In Trouble? House Passes Democrat Resolution To Overturn Some Of Trump’s Tariffs

House GOP

Tariffs

Tennessee&#8217;s Republican congressman John Rose was originally a “no” vote on a move to get the spending package up for a final vote before going to the president to end the government shutdown. In the room with leadership, he switched his vote to “yes.”
It wasn&#8217;t due to a change in heart on the spending proposal, according to Republican congressman with knowledge of the conversation. Rose, according to the Republican colleague, planned to vote &#8220;no&#8221; in protest of positive comments that Trump made about his gubernatorial primary opponent, Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn.
The congressman, who provided details of the situation on background, said Rose &#8220;was just mad because the president had not endorsed him.”
The congressman said that Rose was able to leverage his stance into a meeting with Republican leadership, which CNN also confirmed with Rose directly. Rose said the meeting centered on his frustrations that the SAVE Act not be tacked onto the package, but also said that the gubernatorial race was discussed.
“John is engaged in a tight race for the governorship of Tennessee,&#8221; House Speaker Mike Johnson said.
&#8220;He’s thoughtful about that and he wants a fair fight there and so that&#8217;s what we discussed, but no promises,” Johnson continued when reporters asked about Rose’s flip on Tuesday, according to a CNN clip.
&#8220;You can imagine what that means,” Rose told <a href="https://x.com/elliskkim/status/2018773546835546410?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CNN</a> in response to Johnson’s “fair fight” comments.
A White House official confirmed to The Daily Wire on background that the president and Rose “did not speak” on Tuesday.
The president has yet to make an official endorsement in the race, but the recent positive comments about Blackburn fueled endorsement speculation, including in the <a href="https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/politics/2026/01/29/trump-praises-blackburn-for-governor-raising-speculation-of-endorsement/88398974007/?gnt-cfr=1&amp;gca-cat=p&amp;gca-uir=true&amp;gca-epti=z11xx65p118950c118950v11xx65d--39--b--39--&amp;gca-ft=203&amp;gca-ds=sophi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Knoxville News Sentinel</a>.
“Marsha Blackburn is an incredible person. Unfortunately, she is running for governor. She is running for governor of Tennessee,” the president said at the Trump Accounts summit last week.
“I’d love her not to, I begged her, I said Marsha, &#8216;Don&#8217;t, we don&#8217;t want to lose you in the Senate,’ but I have to say, they&#8217;re lucky. They&#8217;re lucky to get you. Because you&#8217;re a talent and a great person, and you&#8217;ve been with me all the way, and I appreciate it, and you&#8217;re a very special person. Marsha, stand up, please,” he continued.
The Republican congressman said Rose “took that as an endorsement.”
The procedural vote ended up squeaking by with just 217 votes, as Republicans hold a narrow 218 majority. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) voted against the rule, along with all Democrats. The actual spending package vote passed with 217, but with bipartisan support and opposition. Rose voted to reopen the government.
The Daily Wire reached out to Rose’s office and his campaign for comment.
A January poll of 559 Republican primary voters shows Blackburn leading Rose with 56% compared with his 9%, according to The Beacon Center of Tennessee. The Cook Political Report ranked the general election race as “Solid Republican.”
Rose was part of the group of GOP lawmakers that wanted the act included in the spending package as a way to get it up for a Senate vote. The legislation, which would require nationwide documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, has already passed the House but has yet to be voted on in the Senate.
On X, Rose wrote that Senate Majority Leader John Thune “is already backtracking on what he reportedly told some House Republicans: that if we reopened the government, he’d keep his word and bring the SAVE Act to the floor.”
“House Republicans MUST hold the line and refuse to fold on something as fundamental as election integrity. The SAVE Act belongs on must-pass legislation,” he added.
The House voted to end the shutdown on Tuesday afternoon, as Congress gears up for a battle over Department of Homeland Security funding, which was only approved through Feb. 13.

TrumpJohn Rose Split (getty)

Tennessee Republican Threw Wrench Into Shutdown Vote Because He Was ‘Mad’ At Trump, Congressman Says

john rose

Marsha Blackburn

Tennessee

The House voted to end the government shutdown on Tuesday in a 217 to 214 bipartisan vote, and the appropriations bills will head to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature.
The spending package returned to the House after the White House and Senate Democrats agreed to split Department of Homeland Security funding from the rest of the broader legislation. Lawmakers instead opted for a continuing resolution to fund DHS while immigration enforcement policies remain under debate. The CR for DHS is set to expire on Feb. 13, while the other bills would fund the federal government through September.
The House had already passed the spending bills, but they were punted back to the chamber after pressure from Senate Democrats for the DHS split following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis last month.
Some Republican lawmakers wanted the SAVE Act, a bill that would require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, inserted into the package to send it back to the Senate.
The proposal has already passed the House, but it has not progressed in the Senate, with GOP House lawmakers calling on Senate Rules Committee Chair Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to get the process started.
However, Trump said Monday that there should be no changes to the spending package the Senate approved on Friday.
“I am working hard with Speaker Johnson to get the current funding deal, which passed in the Senate last week, through the House and to my desk, where I will sign it into Law, IMMEDIATELY!” Trump posted to Truth Social at the time.
“There can be NO CHANGES at this time. We will work together in good faith to address the issues that have been raised, but we cannot have another long, pointless, and destructive Shutdown that will hurt our Country so badly — One that will not benefit Republicans or Democrats. I hope everyone will vote, YES!” He continued.
As for the DHS debate, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) expects tension in Washington.
“Next week and the week after will be intense. The two sides are pretty far apart,” Johnson (R-LA) told Punchbowl News on Tuesday.
Democrats have a long list of demands that they want for ICE and CBP to limit their current immigration enforcement tactics, including the end of masking for agents.
“No more anonymous agents. No more secret operatives,” Schumer said last week.
“These are common-sense reforms – ones that Americans know and expect from law enforcement,” he added.

President Trump Presents The Mexican Border Defense Medal At The White House

Government Shutdown To End As House Sends Spending Package To Trump

Government Shutdown

Immigration

WASHINGTON—The partial government shutdown is in full swing after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and the White House agreed to pass five funding bills separate from contentious Department of Homeland Security funding.
The majority of the federal government <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/senate-reaches-funding-deal-with-shutdown-still-set-to-begin-at-midnight?author=Cameron+Arcand&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Senate+Reaches+Funding+Deal%2C+With+Shutdown+Still+Set+To+Begin+At+Midnight">shut down</a> at midnight on February 1, after the Senate voted to carve Homeland Security funding out of its spending bill, which has yet to pass the House of Representatives. House Speaker Mike Johnson said on “Meet the Press” Sunday that he’s confident the shutdown will be brief, and he’s hoping to see it end by Tuesday.
“Our intention is by Tuesday, all agencies of the federal government, except for that one, and then we’ll have two weeks of good faith negotiations, to figure it out,” Johnson said. &#8220;Republicans are going do the responsible thing and fund the government.&#8221;
But it is unclear how many House Democrats will back the spending package, given that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) was not part of the deal between the White House and Schumer, saying in a statement on Friday that the caucus “will evaluate the spending legislation passed by the Senate on its merits and then decide how to proceed legislatively.”
The House Rules Committee is set to meet Monday afternoon in hopes to move the package forward. The new deal swaps DHS funding for a continuing resolution that covers money for the agency through Feb. 13, whereas the other bills covered funds through the end of the fiscal year in September.
Homeland Security funding became a flashpoint for Democrats after the killing of Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis. Democrats are calling for sweeping changes to the Trump administration&#8217;s immigration policies, with some going so far as to call for the total defunding of Homeland Security.
Their defunding efforts may be fruitless, as the immigration agencies were largely funded by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Still, Democrats seem hopeful that they can leverage the entire department’s funding, which includes the budgets of FEMA and TSA, to push for reform. Schumer and other Democrats are asking for sweeping changes to ICE and Border Patrol, including the ending of masking for agents and the use of judicial warrants as opposed to administrative ones, which could make some arrests much more difficult, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-how-democrats-could-cripple-ice-without-defunding-dhs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a> reported.
“There is currently not a structure in the federal government to add millions of judicial immigration warrants,&#8221; a federal official told The Daily Wire. &#8220;This effort is being pushed to roadblock the deportation agenda of the president.&#8221;
Prior to Pretti&#8217;s death, the House had approved all of the government spending bills and sent them to the Senate. There are 12 appropriations bills in total, six of which President Donald Trump has already signed.

Partial Government Shutdown Fully Underway As Congress Takes Up Spending Bills

Senate

President Donald Trump is set to deliver the first State of the Union speech of his second term on February 24.
The date was made firm after an official <a href="https://mikejohnson.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2812">invite</a> from Speaker of the House Mike Johnson for Trump to address a special joint session of Congress.
“As our nation marks the Semiquincentennial Anniversary of American Independence, the United States stands stronger, freer, and more prosperous under your leadership and bold action. Together in 2025, your administration and the 119th Congress delivered one of the most consequential agendas in history, and Americans across this great country will experience the tangible results of commonsense governance,” Johnson wrote.
“We look forward to advancing the important work ahead of us in 2026, serving the American people, defending liberty, and preserving this grand experiment in self-governance. To that end, it is my distinct honor and great privilege to invite you to address a Joint Session of Congress on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, in the Chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives,” he said.
The speech will be a chance for the president to tout his administration’s successes in its first year while attempting to set a narrative ahead of a challenging midterm election season.
The speech will be his second address delivered to a joint session of Congress of his second term. His first address was delivered on March 4 of last year, and while it was not officially a State of the Union speech, it had all the trappings of such a speech.
Trump’s State of the Union speeches in the past have been heavy on showmanship from the real estate tycoon and reality television mogul. Trump’s State of the Union speeches by historical standards are lengthy affairs and have consistently run for over an hour. Last year, his speech to the joint session <a href="https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/presidential-documents-archive-guidebook/annual-messages-congress-the-state-the-union-0">ran</a> for about one hour and 40 minutes, making it the longest speech ever delivered to a joint session of Congress.

Speaker Johnson Sets Date For Trump’s State Of The Union

Date Set For Trump's State Of The Union

State of the Union

The House will vote on a three-year extension of the Affordable Care Act subsidies after 218 lawmakers – all Democrats and four Republicans – signed a discharge petition on Wednesday.
The move comes after Speaker Mike Johnson said he would not personally allow a floor vote, saying, “In the end, there was not an agreement,” <a href="https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/12/16/congress/mike-johnson-aca-vote-00692703">according</a> to POLITICO.
The subsidies are set to expire at the end of this year as a longer-term solution continues to be debated. Most Democrats have argued that the subsidies must continue to avoid insurance premiums from spiking. Many Republicans have argued that the dependency on subsidies to keep premiums low demonstrates that the Obama-era program is unsustainable.
“This morning I signed the discharge for the clean 3-year extension of the enhanced premium tax credit. While I have been working for a bipartisan compromise with reforms, the failure of leadership to allow a vote on the floor left me with no choice but to sign the Democrats discharge petition,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) <a href="https://x.com/lawler4ny/status/2001309363571425600">posted to X</a>. “With [Brian Fitzpatrick], [Rob Bresnahan] and [Ryan Mackenzie] joining me in signing, it now has 218 signatures.”
“The Speaker should immediately bring it to the floor for an up or down vote and let the House do the work of the American people,” Lawler continued.
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A vote following the petition could occur today if a specific procedural action is taken, but the vote is more likely to happen in January.
“To get this done TODAY, we need to defeat the previous question on the House Floor. And we need them to vote with us to do it,” Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) <a href="https://x.com/RepMcGovern/status/2001312688765382927">posted to X</a>. “To be clear, that vote on my amendment to the rule is the exact same language they already signed on to today.”
“It’s our last chance before Congress goes out of session since the discharge petition they signed takes 7 legislative days to ripen,” the congressman added.
If the House votes to extend the subsidies, it will then go to the Senate.
“Obviously, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,&#8221; Senate Majority Leader John Thune said amid news of the discharge petition, according to Semafor. &#8220;Even if they have a sufficient number of signatures, I doubt they would vote this week.&#8221;
Trump has railed against the Affordable Care Act, suggesting during the government shutdown in November that “the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies in order to save the bad Healthcare provided by ObamaCare, BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE.”
&#8220;Somebody said I want to extend it for two years. I don&#8217;t want to extend it for two years. I&#8217;d rather not extend them at all,&#8221; Trump said in November, according to <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-extend-obamacare-subsidies/story?id=127900310&amp;utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ABC News</a>, adding that “some kind of an extension may be necessary to get something else done because the unaffordable care act has been a disaster. It&#8217;s a disaster.&#8221;

Federal Government Shuts Down After Congress Fails To Pass Funding Bill

House To Force Vote On Obamacare Funding

Obamacare Subsidies Vote Will Be Forced In House After Successful Discharge Petition

Healthcare

Obamacare

The House of Representatives passed a massive bipartisan $900 billion package on Wednesday to increase pay for troops, authorize defense infrastructure spending, and provide hundreds of millions in funding for Ukraine.
The 3,000-page National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) <a href="https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025320">passed</a> 312-112 with 197 Republicans and 115 Democrats voting in favor. House Republican leadership celebrated the legislation, saying that it was critical to advancing the Trump administration’s foreign policy goals. 
“With the NDAA, President Trump and Congressional Republicans are restoring American strength, defending our homeland, standing with our allies, and ensuring the United States remains the most powerful and capable military force the world has ever known,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) <a href="https://x.com/SpeakerJohnson/status/1998935936164327660">said</a>. 
House Republicans said that the bill would codify 15 of President Donald Trump’s executive orders, including removing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) mandates and initiatives from the military, declaring an emergency at the southern border, banning men from participating on women’s sports teams at military academies, and building a “Golden Dome” missile defense system.
&#8220;America is the world’s strongest country because of our military,&#8221; said Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX). &#8220;With FY26 NDAA, Congress sends a clear message: We are committed to protecting our homeland, keeping our troops safe, and preserving peace.&#8221;
The bill allocates $800 million in support to Ukraine the next two years, increases spending on shipbuilding, forces War Secretary Pete Hegseth to turn over footage of strikes on drug boats or face cuts to his travel budget, limits Hegseth’s authority to pull American troops out of Europe, repeals certain sanctions on Syria, increases troop pay by 3.8%, and repeals the authorizations of force for the 2003 Iraq War and the Persian Gulf War.
A ban on the Department of War funding transgender surgeries for troops did not make the final version of the legislation. 
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Eighteen Republicans, mostly members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, voted against the final passage of the bill. Some voiced concerns about the amount of spending and aid allocated to Ukraine and other foreign countries, while others believe not enough waste was cut. 
Rep. Keith Self (R-TX) <a href="https://x.com/RepKeithSelf/status/1998885041263292751">said</a> that he voted no because there was no provision included to ban a central bank digital currency. Self said he had been promised that language because a central bank digital currency would be an “ultimate tool for government surveillance and control over every American’s finances. It would hand the federal government unprecedented power to track, restrict, and even freeze transactions.”
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) took issue with the hundreds of millions allocated for Ukraine and said lawmakers did not have enough time to review the legislation. 
“Over 100 Democrats voted to pass this. That ought to tell you right there what this is about. Got some liberal stuff tucked in there, and it&#8217;s over 3,000 pages. We get it on Sunday, and they&#8217;re voting on it today. There&#8217;s no way we will ever know what was in there,” he said. 
The bill will now head to the Senate.

Speaker Johnson Talks To Reporters Following GOP Conference Meeting

House Approves Major Defense Bill Boosting Troop Pay, Funding Ukraine Aid

Defense

National Security

NDAA

Ukraine

FRANKLIN, Tenn. — “The reputation of our state is on the line,” said Tennessee Republican senator Bill Hagerty as he addressed several hundred Republican voters gathered Monday morning to rally support for congressional candidate Matt Van Epps one day before a crucial special election.
The temperatures outside were chilly, but the mood of Republican officials inside the rally was confident yet urgent. Most said they believed that Van Epps would win the race for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, but that the margins could be closer than what would typically be expected in the Republican favorable district. Van Epps is facing off against state Democrat Representative Aftyn Behn, a far-Left candidate who supports transgender procedures on kids and wants to roll back Tennessee’s pro-life protections.
Democrats have poured millions into the race, capitalizing on their wins last month and hoping for low Republican turnout in the rural areas of the district and high turnout in parts of Nashville. Former congressman Mark Green won the district by over 20 points during the 2024 election before later announcing his resignation.
“It’s all going to come down to the numbers, and my friends, the Democrats have seen an opportunity. They’re counting on us to slide into December 2 having enjoyed Thanksgiving and not thinking that this seat is at risk,” Hagerty said. “The message that we can send from here in Tennessee has to be loud and clear. Not only is Tennessee a red state, Tennessee seven is a red district, and the reputation of our state is on the line.”
Hagerty said he believed that Van Epps would be OK, but that Tennessee voters had a chance to put a stop to Democrat confidence after racking up wins in Virginia and New Jersey.
The rally was held at the barn of American businessman and billionaire Willis Johnson in rural Williamson County with the backdrop of Johnson’s classic car collection on display. Inside the rally were a who’s who of Volunteer State Republicans, including Governor Bill Lee, Senator Marsha Blackburn, Rep. John Rose, Rep. Andy Ogles, Rep. Tim Burchett, state Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson, and state GOP Chair Scott Golden.
&#8220;We are going to win this because we are going to have a coalition that gets out and we&#8217;re going to win decisively,&#8221; Van Epps told the crowd, promising to fight for America First policies if elected to office.
Van Epps won a crowded Republican primary in August after being endorsed by President Donald Trump. A number of Van Epps&#8217; primary opponents, including Reps. Gino Bulso and Jody Barrett, were in attendance and gave Van Epps their full-throated support.
Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters also spoke, as did House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who flew in from Washington, D.C., Monday morning. To much cheering, Johnson called President Donald Trump, who addressed the crowd on speaker phone.
<div id="attachment_1007877" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1007877" class="size-full wp-image-1007877" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248788404.jpg" alt="FRANKLIN, TENNESSEE - DECEMBER 1: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) holds his phone to the microphone during a call with U.S. President Donald Trump during a get out the vote event held in support of Republican congressional candidate Matt Van Epps on December 1, 2025 in Franklin, Tennessee. Tennessee's 7th congressional district special election is being held to fill the seat vacated following the resignation of republican Mark Green. " width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248788404.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248788404-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248788404-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/12/GettyImages-2248788404-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Credit: Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images.</div>
Trump said that he heard the “crowd is incredible” and that he wanted to be there in person, but that the Secret Service said it would be difficult on such short notice.
“I love Tennessee, one of my all-time favorite places. Tennessee, I guess, loves me because we won by the biggest margins anybody has ever won by,” Trump said. &#8220; But if you can go Matt Van Epps, he&#8217;s a winner, he&#8217;s going to be great. Don&#8217;t let this stuff fool you.”
Trump also ripped into Behn for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/music-city-fumble-dem-candidate-said-she-hates-city-she-wants-to-represent-in-congress">previously saying</a> that she hates country music. “How the hell can you elect a person like that?” Trump asked.
Several Republican officials said that they expected Van Epps to win by about 7-10% of the vote. State Senator Joey Hensley told The Daily Wire he thought he would win by 8-10% of the vote, while Williamson County GOP Chair Steve Hickey said he believed the margin would be about 7%. Congressman John Rose told The Daily Wire he thought Van Epps would finish strong.
Multiple local attendees who spoke with The Daily Wire said that they worried that a sense of complacency had set in across the district because the seat went so strongly Republican in the past. Attendee Matt said that he couldn’t believe how close the polls indicated the race would be and said he was confused why Green resigned his seat. Chad, who said he had voted early, said he was worried that Republican turnout would be low.
Other Republicans said the result would hinge on turnout. “The game is tied and it will be decided what we do tomorrow,” Golden said.

House Speaker Johnson Campaigns With Tennessee GOP Congressional Candidate Matt Van Epps

‘The Reputation Of Our State Is On The Line’: GOP Begins Final Push Before Critical House Election

2025 elections

Aftyn Behn

Matt Van Epps

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