What Did They Say?

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Browse major news stories and see what officials have said.

Tag: mike-johnson ✕

After Seven Working Days Since Summer Recess, the House Cancels Thursday's Votes and Goes Home Until the Midterms — Speaker Johnson Says "The House Has Done Its Work," Hakeem Jeffries Says the "American People Deserve Better Than a Do-Nothing Republican Congress," and Two Republicans Say Out Loud That the Job Is Not Finished

On September 16, 2026, House Republican leaders cancelled Thursday's votes and sent members home until after the November midterms — closing a post-recess session that ran just seven working days. Left on the floor were AI legislation, further action on the Russia sanctions package, and the privileged resolution Thomas Massie had filed to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Speaker Mike Johnson framed it as members returning to their districts to make their case to voters, and said he would bring the House back on 48 hours' notice if the Senate moved legislation. He rejected the charge that the cancellation was designed to duck the Hegseth impeachment vote as "ridiculous." Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries called it a do-nothing Congress and argued the House should not leave town without acting on the pace of AI development. Notably, the sharpest objections also came from Johnson's own conference: Chip Roy and Ralph Norman both said publicly that the House should stay until the work was done. Stances below are relative to the decision to adjourn: "support" backs going home, "oppose" wanted the House to stay.

“The House has done its work. It's time for our members to go home to their districts and make their case to the American people.”

Mike Johnson (R-LA) · Sep 16, 2026
congress
house
mike-johnson
7 statements

Speaker Johnson Cancels the Last Two Weeks of September Votes, Leaving the House Four Legislative Days Before the Midterms — "This Congress Has Done Phenomenal Work," He Says, While Raskin Calls It Republicans "Scrambling to Catch Up With Their Constituents"

On September 3, 2026 House Republican leadership scrapped the weeks of September 21 and September 28 from the legislative calendar — eight scheduled voting days — in a reversal of what Speaker Mike Johnson had told reporters earlier in the same week. Under the revised schedule the House returns the evening of Monday, September 14, works through Thursday, September 17, and then leaves Washington for roughly six weeks of campaigning ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. The move follows the September 1 passage of the continuing resolution funding the government through December 11, which Trump signed on September 2 and which removed the last must-pass item from the pre-election calendar. It comes 60 days out from an election in which public polling has shown Democrats positioned to take the House. Johnson framed the change as members balancing competing demands and noted that members can be called back into session. Minority Whip Katherine Clark's office flagged it as a departure from the announced schedule, and House Judiciary ranking member Jamie Raskin cast it as a party fleeing its own record. Rank-and-file Republicans split: Tim Burchett and Rich McCormick argued there was nothing left to do in Washington, while Diana Harshbarger and Michael Cloud said there was unfinished legislative business.

“This Congress has done phenomenal work, and the members are jostling a lot of different priorities right now.”

Mike Johnson (R-LA) · Sep 3, 2026
congress
house-of-representatives
legislative-schedule
8 statements