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House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., got into a tense confrontation with two Democratic senators outside his office on Wednesday as anxiety runs high on Capitol Hill on Day 8 of the government shutdown.
Sens. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., gathered reporters outside Johnson’s office in a bid to publicly pressure the House speaker to swear in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., who won a special election last month to fill her late father’s seat.
Johnson appeared to catch the Democrats by surprise when he crashed their media gaggle.
“Reopen the government so we can get back to work,” he said in response to Gallego asking about Grijalva’s swearing-in.
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Gallego retorted, “This excuse just keeps on moving.”
“We’re happy that she got elected. She’s filling her father’s seat. That’s fantastic. We have a long tradition here and a process of how we administer the oath to a member,” Johnson said despite the Democrats’ attempts at interruption.
“We’re going to do that as soon as we get back to work, but we need the lights turned back on, so we encourage both of you to go open the government.”
Gallego shot back that Johnson was keeping the House out of session in a bid to delay a vote on forcing the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release files on the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
“You just don’t want to vote on the Epstein discharge petition,” Gallego said.
Johnson called the comment “totally absurd,” adding, “You guys are experts at red herrings and distraction. It has nothing to do with Epstein. The House Oversight Committee is working on the Epstein files right now.”
Gallego called that an “excuse,” prompting more back-and-forth between the men.
“OK, you see, this is a publicity stunt. Let me tell you what’s happening. The House Oversight Committee is working on the release of the Epstein files. They are some of the biggest bulldogs in Congress, and the Republican and Democrat sides are working on that aggressively,” Johnson said.
Gallego asked, “So why are you blocking her then?”
“I’m not blocking her. I just told you,” Johnson said.
At one point, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., joined the fray, telling the senators, “With all due respect, you voted multiple times to keep the government shut down, OK? The Republican members from Arizona voted to keep government open. So don’t sit here and try to lecture us about whether or not we did our job. We did our jobs. You did not.”
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“Get your people in and stop covering up for the pedophiles,” Gallego said after more back-and-forth.
Lawler responded, “There’s nobody covering up for pedophiles, so knock it the hell off.”
Kelly, meanwhile, interjected multiple times that Democrats were fighting to extend enhanced ObamaCare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of this year without congressional action.
The standoff occurred just as Senate Democrats blocked the GOP’s federal funding bill for a sixth time, extending the ongoing government shutdown.
The House passed a bill to extend fiscal year (FY) 2025 federal funding levels through Nov. 21 to give lawmakers more time to create a longer-term deal for FY 2026 spending.
But Democrats, furious at being sidelined in federal funding talks, have largely said they’ll reject any deal that does not include an extension of the expiring ObamaCare subsidies.
Grijalva won her race on Sept. 23.
The House has not been in session since Sept. 19, and Johnson has signaled the chamber would not return until Senate Democrats agree with the GOP’s funding plan.
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