Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican Chaos

In this episode, Niki, Natalia, and Neil discuss the drama around the election of the new Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson.

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: 

• Until this week, the new Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was little known beyond Louisiana and ultraconservative circles. Natalia referenced this CNN piece about Johnson’s homophobic comments, and historian Matthew Dallek’s article for TIME. Neil referred to Niki’s latest CNN column.

In our regular closing feature, What’s Making History:

• Natalia discussed Ksenia Svetlova’s New Republic piece, “Why We On the Israeli Left Feel Hit on Both Sides.”
• Neil recommended historian Lauren Lassabe Shepherd’s Daily Beast article, “Could Mississippi Actually Elect a Democratic Governor?”
• Niki shared about the Radiotopia podcast, “The Unmarked Graveyard: Stories from Hart Island.”