mike johnson | Enem Insights

A throughline is reportedly developing in the reaction of Republican lawmakers to the controversies piling up around President Donald Trump.

The president and his legal team have reportedly asked the Department of Justice for $230 million to settle damage claims related to his past federal prosecutions. However, House Speaker Mike Johnson responded firmly, saying, “Never happen again, and for that, there needs to be accountability.”

Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) conceded that he had “optics concerns” about Trump’s move. Meanwhile, Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) stated, “I decide based on what I hear from my constituents.” Lummis was among many GOP lawmakers who claimed they “never heard about” Trump’s demand for $230 million from their constituents.

Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) indicated that he and other Republicans “look through the lenses of our state” — in his case, focusing on hurricane recovery in western North Carolina — before criticizing the president. “I want to make sure that those he’s appointed to his cabinet are actually doing that,” Budd added.

On the other hand, Democrats told MSNBC that their Republican colleagues are primarily afraid of going against Trump. Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA) explained, “Trump’s wrath if they cross him badly, and their own voters who are rightfully pissed off right now over the Argentina bailout. That’s why they’re mostly silent, and when they do speak out, it’s on something like Argentina where their base is leaving them no choice, and where Trump probably won’t end their careers over just this one thing.”
https://www.rawstory.com/donald-trump-corruption-2674225593/

Donald Trump, Mike Johnson, and other top Republicans were told to “eat crow” on Saturday after the New York Police Department (NYPD) contradicted a popular right-wing narrative.

More than 100,000 people in New York gathered for the “No Kings” pro-democracy protests that took place across the U.S. over the weekend. The GOP had hyped the notion that these protesters would be violent or even labeled as “terrorists.” However, in New York, that narrative did not hold true, according to NYPD News.

“The majority of the No Kings protests have dispersed at this time and all traffic closures have been lifted,” the NYPD account reported. “We had more than 100,000 people across all five boroughs peacefully exercising their First Amendment rights, and the NYPD made zero protest-related arrests.”

This announcement led to widespread mockery online. Ex-prosecutor Ron Filipkowski sarcastically remarked, “So no terrorism then? Every single No Kings protest, all 2,500+ of them across the country, made Mike Johnson and House Republican leadership look like lying sacks of [expletive] for all the bulls**t they spewed out of their mouths about it this week. Again. Not very Christian,” he added.

Conservative commentator Bill Kristol weighed in as well, stating, “You know who should just f___ off? Mike Johnson and all those other Trumpist liars and smear artists.”

PatriotTakes, a group dedicated to monitoring and exposing right-wing extremism and threats to democracy, noted, “Wait, Republicans said these were all violent terrorists.”

No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen also chimed in: “NYPD announces that zero arrests were made at the massive No Kings protests today after Republicans spent days claiming the protestors are violent terrorists.”

Jon Favreau joked, “Wow, NYPD covering up for Antifa smdh.”

Professor Adam Cochran highlighted the significance of the NYPD’s restraint, stating, “Wow, NYPD (not known for being easy going) made ZERO arrests related to protesting in one of the largest NY protests ever. Turns out being against fascism has NOTHING to do with violence!”

The peaceful nature of the protests and the NYPD’s zero-arrest report serve as a strong rebuttal to the GOP’s prior claims, sparking discussions about misinformation and political rhetoric surrounding nationwide demonstrations.
https://www.rawstory.com/liars-nypd-gop/